When You Walk Away
by Hari-Aisu
Summary: It wasn't as if there was anything special about the boy, Sephiroth thought to himself as he stared at the blond from his position behind the large bush in his way. But if that were the case, why couldn't he just leave well enough alone?
1. Chapter One

A/N: Uh… Um… Hi. Lol.

That was lame. :p

Ok, here we go, something different, something different! Here's my first foray into a different fandom other than Death Note in over… two years! Omg, FFVII, feel special. Lol.

Before you ask, yes, this is a SephxCloud fic. Yes, it is an A/U. Yes, it is humor, but not on a completely crack-ish level. And no, I have no idea how long these chapters are going to be. This is just an intro; I want to see how people take to the first chapter before going all out on this fic. It's not going to be super long; I predict 10 chapters max, maybe even less. But I like the premise, so let me know what you guys think! The biggest thing I'm worried about is characterization, but since it's humor, I think it's alright if it isn't completely perfect…

Damn am I ever going to fuck with these characters. ESPECIALLY YOU SEPHIROTH! You I will bother most of all! MWAHAHAHAHAHA!

But don't mind that. -.-; Hope you guys enjoy; and remember, criticism and reader response very much encouraged!

Disclaimer: Hari-chan does not own any part of the Final Fantasy Series nor does she have anything to do with Final Fantasy VII in particular. Do you really think she would be writing fan-fiction if she did? o.O;

* * *

"_Sometimes I wanna quit this all _

_And become an accountant now, _

_But I'm no good at math _

_And besides, the dollar is down…_

_Plant palm trees on Lake Michigan _

_Before it gets cold!_

_I gotta feel the wind-chill again_

_Before I get old…_

_I wanna scream I love you from the top of my lungs-_

_But I'm afraid that someone else will hear me._"

-"The (Shipped) Gold Standard" by Fall Out Boy

* * *

Title: _**When You Walk Away**_

Chapter One: _The (Shipped) Gold Standard_

* * *

"He's _still_ sitting there after who knows how long…" A smooth baritone whispered against the near-silent wind billowing past, long silver hair falling over a tall figure shrouded by bushes as forest green eyes lit up with curiosity. "Hm… Zack was not joking then."

Huffing out a small sigh, timid fingers pulled at the spiky blond locks of hair hanging over bright blue eyes. Tired after nearly an hour of staring at the same spot, long legs seem to shift uncomfortably as the teenage boy continued his silent vigilante over the forest stretched before him, the tiny plateau he was perched upon giving him the perfect vantage point to view the whole of the plantation settled before him.

Honestly, if he had a halo stretched over his head and a beam of light set above his head, a random pedestrian could have mistaken the teen for an angel.

A random stranger, of course.

Not Sephiroth.

_A random stranger, damn it_.

"HEY SPIKY!"

So into his own thoughts, the silver-haired behemoth nearly fell over himself as a dark-haired lad with sporadic hand movements came speeding into the clearing, violet eyes glimmering with both amusement and perpetual cheer.

"Don't tell me you've been out here day-dreamin' again, Cloud-ster…" The older man grinned as he nudged the blushing blond on the shoulder whilst the now-embarrassed youth stood up, brushing off his holey jeans and black tee-shirt with his free hand. "Aw, don't be like that! I was just messin' with ya!"

"Hm… it's ok." Cloud poked his head up, clear blues eyes shielded slightly by his smooth blond fringe. "Was Professor Gast looking for me again?"

"Nah, it was Aerith this time." Zack laughed as he patted the small boy on his head, the tiny body flinching to get away from the touch. Not noticing the teenager's discomfort, Zack continued on as if nothing. "She said something about 'homework' and 'English teacher biting you in the ass if you didn't get your behind into doing it'…"

"Do I have to…?" The tiny boy quietly whined before groaning, slouching out of the large clearing. "Whatever…"

Zack continued to smile at the boy even as his body disappeared through the thick mirage of trees, slowly letting his gaze slink over to his right side…

"You can come out now; seriously, silver and black is not very imperative when you're trying to camouflage yourself behind a _bush_."

Sephiroth held back a snarl as he attempted to carefully weave himself out from behind the giant piece of foliage-

Only to yelp (but he would be damned if anyone called it so) as he fell over on the ground face-first in front of prankster and smart-ass extraordinaire, Zackary Fair.

To say that the younger man still standing was laughing his ass off was an understatement, but Sephiroth let it slide…

_This time._

"Jeez, how did he _not _see you there?!" Zack yelped as his best friend took a swipe in his general direction, knowing the swing was lacking the bite of anger everyone seemed to think Sephiroth held onto every minute of every day. "You were in plain fucking sight!"

Brushing back his lengthy silver locks over his shoulder, Sephiroth straightened his own set of clothing, dark blue skinny jeans and black tank-top unruffled under his black knee-length leather jacket. "He seemed pretty preoccupied about whatever it was he was thinking about, so I can thank his own thoughts for the cover provided. I did not think you were being serious when you told me how out of touch with reality he actually is."

"Eh?" Ruffling his own dark spiky locks with his free hand, Zack patted his fellow collegiate friend on the shoulder. "Well, he's not that bad once you get to know him, ya know? It's just, Gast barely sees him with anyone his own age and the only time he actually spends with people is either at school or at dinner, when Aerith has to force him downstairs to eat with all of us. Other than that… he just refuses to get close to anyone on his own freewill."

"Hm…"

"Remind you of anyone?" Zack teased, once again dodging the wild swing sent in his direction. "C'mon! I figured I'd tell ya about him because you two have so much in common! You both hate people…"

"First off, I doubt he hates people, he just refuses to interact with them for whatever reason he deems well enough. Honestly, I don't blame the boy…"

"You both keep yourself at a distance…"

"For entirely different reasons, I'm sure. Have you seen the amount of crazy fan-girls and boys that surround me on a daily basis? I would have to be insane to cater to their obsessive needs by putting myself out in the open in such a way!"

"You're both sexy-delicious…"

"… … Zackary, sometimes, you make me want to stab you." Sephiroth felt his eye twitch as he glared at his best friend, stoic demeanor crumbling as the conversation at hand continued despite his best efforts to end it. "HARD."

"And finally, you're both orphans!" Zack finished off, crossing his arms against his chest in a way reminiscent to his mentor and teacher Angeal. "See? So much in common!"

"Yes, I can see our endless amount of conversations now." The silver-haired juggernaut deadpanned as he swiftly moved past the immature raven-haired college student. "You don't have a mother or father either? Well, how wonderful! Let's go place ourselves in the throes of passion in order to forget our pain and make non-existent babies together."

"… … …"

"I was kidding, Zack."

"I knew that!" Zack awkwardly laughed as he patted himself on the back, his best friend not looking the least bit amused.

Sephiroth nearly face-palmed himself as he exited the clearing, the violet-eyed hyperactive maniac behind him dragging at his heels like a puppy in heat.

'Oh my God, I think Zack's stupidity is beginning to infect me as well…'

* * *

"AAAAEEERRRIIIITTTHHHH!"

Sephiroth really did smack himself in the face as Zack pounded on the door before him with vigor, wondering why he continually hung out with a man that would one day drive him off a cliff.

_Literally._

"Zack." A tiny girl with long auburn-colored hair tied back in a pink ribbon and stricken apple-green eyes smiled exasperatedly as she opened the door that had been separating them, waving at the silver-haired man towering behind the overactive man practically jumping in excitement. "Do you have to do that every time you come over? I think you're going to give the old lady across the street a heart-attack one of these days…"

"Ah, she's got the heart of a bull!" Pounding on his chest, Zack barely glanced behind him to see an old woman with vibrant white hair glare at him before viciously slamming her door closed out of spite. "See? Perfectly fine!"

"Right." Aerith giggled. "Well, come on in! Father isn't home yet, but dinner's almost ready regardless. I think he's made a break through with some new experiment he has going on with Professor Hojo, but he barely speaks to me about it…"

"Don't look at me." Sephiroth muttered as both Zack and Aerith turned towards him, eyes questioning. "I know next to nothing about Hojo's experiments, and I know I am better off not knowing anything about them thank you both very much."

"Spoil-sport." Zack flinched as Sephiroth lifted his hand, sticking out his tongue as the taller man simply smirked at the sudden reaction on his part. "Heeeyyyyy, Aer-babe, where's Cloud anyway?! I told him to come straight home after you beckoned me to do your bidding!"

"Up in his room… _again_." Aerith sighed as she led the two men into the living room, staring up at the staircase leading up to their bedrooms. "When I told him that the both of you would be joining us for dinner, he said that he would finish his work upstairs and to call him when dinner was ready. And I'm pretty sure he only said _that _because he knew I wouldn't let him skip out on dinner _again_."

"He didn't eat last night?"

"Or the night before that." Brushing off imaginary dirt off of her knee-length pink dress, the young girl made her way to the kitchen. "I'll start serving dinner; Zack, please set the table. Sephiroth, would you mind fetching Cloud for me, please?"

Zack pouted as he stalked into the kitchen, mumbling something about Sephiroth having the easy job as the older man nodded, his smile small and uneasy. Knowing the cause of Sephiroth's disquiet, Aerith smiled warmly in return, nodding in encouragement.

"Think of this as your time to informally introduce yourself." Aerith whispered. "I know you _want to…_"

"Aerith!"

"I'm coming!"

Making his way up the stairs, Sephiroth rubbed his sweaty palms against the rough fabric of his jeans, not knowing why his body was suddenly reacting in such a manner. Though he had just seen Cloud not even an hour before, the prospect of speaking to him face to face instead of watching (read: stalking) him from a distance was frightening.

Stopping before the room he knew was Cloud's (because Aerith had told him on earlier occasions, and not because he had ever… snooped… around…), Sephiroth gently knocked on the door; a complete contrast to Zack's earlier pounding and gargantuan yelling.

'_Please don't ask who is it, please don't ask who is it, please don't ask who is it-_'

"Who is it?"

'_GOD DAMN IT!_'

"It's Sephiroth." The older man winced as he fiddled with his fingers for a moment before holding his hands behind his back, refusing to show an inch of nervousness… even to a _door_. "Aerith asked me to inform you that dinner is being served, Cloud."

The door slowly opened, revealing a startling oceanic blue eye, a lock of golden-blond hair hanging over said orb and pale skin. Stepping aside, Sephiroth tilted his head to the side as the door fully opened and Cloud reluctantly left his safe haven.

"Good evening, Cloud." Sephiroth felt his lips twitch upward, not revealing a full smile, but hinting towards one. "How are you today?"

"Fine." Cloud blushed as those sea-green eyes continued to trail after his lithe form whilst he nodded up at the towering college student, the door to his room suddenly looking all the more inviting. "Thank you for asking."

"It is no problem," gently pushing the boy forward with a still-sweaty-hand, the pale-skinned 21-year-old propelled them towards the stairs, not noticing the vivid flush encompassing the younger boy's cheeks as he did so. "How are your studies if you do not mind me asking?"

"Fine." Cloud once again answered shortly, hands fidgety as he played with the hemming of his tee-shirt. "And yours?"

Never having been one for conversations, Sephiroth could honestly see why Zack had said that he and Cloud were so much alike.

They even diverted attention away from themselves in the same exact way!

'_Somehow, I feel as if this is going to be tougher than I once thought…_'

Clearing his throat (elegantly, of course), Sephiroth smiled as they reached the stairs and began to make their way back to the first floor.

"They are as well as they can be at the moment." Trying to keep his frustrations at bay, Sephiroth watched as the tiny boy glanced up at him over his shoulder, blue eyes wide and questioning. "I enjoy what I do and expect the absolute best of myself; but that is a different matter completely. How have you been taking to Aerith's and Professor Gast's company since they took you in?"

'_Don't say fine, don't say fine, don't say fine-_'

"… … Fine."

'_DOUBLE GOD DAMN IT!_'

He wasn't going to win anything this way.

In order to beat his opponent, he would have to change tactics.

But _how_…

Cloud gave Sephiroth a weird look as he became disturbingly silent and made his way into the kitchen, his heart pounding in his chest as he attempted to ignore the want to turn back and stare at the magnificent demi-god standing within his home.

Smiling timidly at his friend and adopted sister, Cloud sat down as Sephiroth reappeared at the kitchen's entryway, his face determined and set.

For some reason…

Cloud felt himself shiver as his sister laughed cheerily, Zack playfully poking her on the arm with his spoon. Sephiroth quietly sat down beside the blond high-school student, eyes now trained on the food before him.

For some reason, Cloud had a feeling that look had something to do with _him_.

'_Oh why me?_'


	2. Chapter Two

A/N: Ah ha! Here's the next chapter, ready for viewing pleasure! I can't always promise such quick updates since (one) I have school coming up and (two) I never know how long I'll decide to make a chapter until I actually write it, but I hope you enjoy this one.

Once again, please let me know of any improvements that can be made, especially with the characterization. It's humor so I know I can stretch it, but if you see something horribly wrong (like OMG WHY ARE YOU SHOVING THIS IN OUR EYES YOU HORRIBLE MONSTER?! Wrong), let me know. I don't mind a little criticism, ya know?

Disclaimer: Don't own the Final Fantasy series, don't own "The (Shipped) Gold Standard" from chapter one, nor do I own "Candle (Sick and Tired)" from Chapter Two. Both of those songs belong to their respective artists. There. Now leave me alone so I can grieve at my poor-ness in peace k?

* * *

"_I took a ride on a February morning; _

_Just getting over it_

_And dealing with the mourning._

_I started thinking out loud…_

_I'm so sick and tired of being sick and tired._

_My baby's flying off the edge of the road-_

_She's saying "I'm so sorry about that note!"_

_They left me all alone;_

_But I'm so sick and tired of being sick and tired._"

-"Candle (Sick and Tired)" by The White Tie Affair

* * *

Title:_** When You Walk Away**_

Chapter Two: _Candle (Sick and Tired) _

* * *

Cloud shyly smiled his thanks as he placed his plate into the sink and waved at his older sister and friend, not even meeting Sephiroth's intense stare as he backed out of the kitchen.

"Cloud, why don't you stay downstairs a bit longer?" Aerith gently called out, roughly kicking Sephiroth in the leg underneath the wooden table. "Father isn't home yet and it isn't that late…"

"I'm a bit tired, actually-" The blond flinched as three sets of glares (all varying in rancor) hit him all at once. "But I would be delighted to meet you guys in the living room!"

"Splendid!" Aerith hid her deviousness beautifully behind her now-gentle smile, grabbing Cloud's arm before he could exit the room and dragging him back into the living room as he gave the staircase a look of longing. "We do have guests we have to entertain, after all…"

"But Zack and Sephiroth are always hanging around here." The rigid blond muttered underneath his breath. "They might as well live here with all the time they spend at our house…"

"Oh, hush Cloud!" Practically dropping Cloud onto the couch (and almost landing on Sephiroth, who had already claimed a spot on the piece of furniture), the boy scrambled against the farthest corner away from the gorgeous college-student. "They can't help it if they get mobbed every where they go!"

"Actually, that's just Sephiroth!" Zack helpfully added in, snuggling up next to Aerith within the loveseat they occupied. "I think his fan-club can sniff him out from a mile away!"

"Very funny, Zackary." Throwing his long silver hair over his shoulder, luminous jade-green eyes slowly met azure blue, leaving Cloud to take on Sephiroth's intense stare all by his lonesome. "I would rather not speak of such unimportant issues anyway. I have to ask, does our presence here bother you, Cloud?"

"Seph!"

"It's ok." Cloud placated the raven-haired man before he could throw something at his friend's head, not really taking offense to the older man's attitude. "I don't mind it when you guys come over… I just don't see the point of thinking of the both of you as guests when you guys seem to be practically considered family to Aerith and Professor Gast."

"You mean 'dad', don't you Cloud?" Aerith gently added in, trying not to appear too pushy in her insistence. "You know that he would love it if you would consider him as much, Cloud. After all, if Sephiroth and Zack would be considered family… you actually _are_."

Trying to hold back the smile ready to bloom over his lips, Cloud nodded, eyes glistening as he leaned back against the cushions of the comfortable couch. Without realizing it, his body began to unconsciously inch its way closer to Sephiroth's relaxed form as he did so.

"Thank you, Aerith. That really does mean a lot to me." Brushing back his short blond locks from his eyes, the 16-year-old boy missed the way the man next to him seemed to follow his movements with narrowed eyes. "I honestly can't thank you and your father enough for picking me up when you did."

"You're so silly, Cloud!" Aerith laughed off the comment, knowing that the boy's admiration for her and her father stretched far more than any words he could say. Her 'younger brother' wasn't excellent with speech, by when he did speak, it always came from the heart. "You don't have to thank us for anything! Now, why don't we all play a game while we wait for father to come home!"

"I say charades!"

"Oh dear God no…"

"Seph, you're just jealous that I own you in that game!"

"Zack, do you remember what happened the LAST time we played charades?!"

"Uh…

* * *

"_I said I was sorry!" _

"_SORRY WON'T MAKE UP FOR THE THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS IN DAMAGES YOU NEANDERTHAL! Now all my experiments are ruined; RUINED, I SAY! YOU. MUST. __**PERISH**__!"_

"_WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH! SEPHIROTH, SAVE MEEEEEEEEEE!"_

_Sephiroth said nothing as he watched his guardian chase a teenage Zack Fair along their ruined yard, both singed and darkened with soot and other various particles as his fan-girls screeched behind him, all inquiring if he were alright and whether or not his face was damaged in the fire. _

_Sometimes, he wondered what he did in a past life to deserve all this. _

* * *

"Huh." Zack ignored the wide-eyed stares sent his way, Aerith and Cloud seeming to be stunned into silence as Sephiroth's eye twitched at the memory. "It's not as if I burned down _everything _in his lab…"

"There is a reason Zack is not allowed in my home," Sephiroth informed the two younger students now staring at _him _in shock. "Now you all know why."

"Agh, Hojo hates just about everybody! All I did was give him incentive to actually dislike me!" Zack pulled at his girlfriend's ponytail as he hid behind her shoulder, Sephiroth's glare-of-death hitting him at full blast. "Besides, I didn't do it on purpose! I was trying to strike a chicken pose and I fell back by accident-STOP JUDGING ME, DAMN IT!"

"Why were you guys playing charades in his laboratory anyway?" Cloud shyly questioned, blinking as two pairs of dumb-ified stares met his inquiring gaze. "… … … Never-mind."

"You… two…" Aerith burst out laughing as Zack grinned wildly and gave the girl a thumbs-up while Sephiroth stewed quietly within his seat, planning Zack's imminent demise. Cloud gently placed a hand over his forearm, which was still planted across his chest, and smiled in apology.

Well, Sephiroth thought to himself before nodding over at his young charge and smiling in response, there was always a silver lining.

Even if Zack's stupidity was the cloud hanging over his head.

* * *

"I believe it is time for us to be on our way, Zackary."

The younger dark-haired student pouted for a moment before nodding, grabbing his girlfriend of a year and pulling her into a rather messy kiss, making both Cloud and Sephiroth both gag at the gesture.

Yes…

Zack was indeed an idiot.

Grabbing his friend by the collar of his shirt, Sephiroth nodded over at the properly-ravished Aerith and still-grossed-out Cloud and marched out the door, throwing Zack on the ground in a display of platonic love.

It was a fact of life after all; Zack would always be the lover, and Sephiroth would always be the one to beat him senseless after said loving was commenced.

"Hey, uh… Sephiroth?"

The silver-haired friend-beater stumbled in his trek out the door t to find Cloud right behind him, Aerith now no here to be seen.

"It was…" Sephiroth almost gaped as Cloud's usually timid voice caught him off-guard. "It was nice to see you today. Perhaps I'll see you tomorrow?"

Nodding at the boy as he disappeared behind the now-closed doorway, Sephiroth ignored his best friend's grin as he spaced out for a moment and did an internal victory dance.

"… You've got it so bad, Seph." Being pulled out of his thoughts, the much taller male gave his friend a questioning look; Zack simply shook his head in amusement as he brushed off the dirt now clinging to his jeans. "Don't worry, you'll figure it out sooner or later. But while you're figuring it out… could you stop staring at the kid like he's a piece of meat you're about to devour in one taste?! You kept creeping me out in there, Sephie-dear!"

Sephiroth frowned as he fixed his leather jacket, letting go of his zipper in a nervous gesture that almost no one but Zack would be able to identify.

"I have to say, you're lucky that Cloud is as oblivious as he is! Had he been anybody else, they would have either jumped you right there or called the cops and set up a restraining order on the spot!" Flailing wildly, Zack laughed at the confused look on Sephiroth's face, finally realizing what other's could not. "Oh my God, you didn't even _realize_ you were staring at him like that, did you?!"

"Like… what?"

"Like he was a nice juicy steak and you hadn't had a bite to eat in a good long while!" Still laughing his behind off, Zack didn't even notice as Sephiroth halted in his walking and blinked, eyebrows furrowed whilst he crossed his arms against his chest. "I thought I was going to have to send him to his room for his own protection at first! Jeez, Seph, when you're interested in somebody you sure do get awful scary!"

"I did not mean to come off as such." The older silver-haired man quietly admitted, glancing off to the side as cars ran past them in a fit to get to their destinations. "I will have to be careful then, in the future."

Zack gave his friend a strange look before narrowing his gaze, suspicion clouding his stare.

"Future…?"

Not wanting to have to divulge this piece of information (but knowing that unless he did, Zack would only whine and bug him until he did), Sephiroth reluctantly nodded his consent. "I have a plan, Zackary; one that will surely win me Cloud's trust and-"

"Annnndddddd?"

Not liking the sudden gleam lingering in Zack's violet-colored eyes, Sephiroth quietly backed up a bit and continued walking towards his home.

"And nothing else you need to know about."

"I KNEW IT!" Zack suddenly exploded, causing many other bystanders to spin around and stare at the hometown 'hero' and his (for lack of better term) lackey. "SEPHIROTH'S TRYING TO GET INTO CLOUD'S PAN-"

_**BITCH-SLAP!**_

Sephiroth sighed happily as the twitching body next to him lay prone on the street, the smirk on his face both sexy and scary.

It was the little things that made life worth living, really.

Zack always proved this in some form-

"GOD DAMN IT SEPH THAT HURT LIKE A BITCH!"

_Especially_ when it included physical punishment of any kind.

Tomorrow…

Cloud wouldn't know what hit him.

* * *

_**Next Day…**_

* * *

Cloud sighed as he stared out his classroom window, situated right at the back of class as per usual.

His sister often commented that he didn't have much friends and that she hope once school got underway, he would be able to make more.

Unfortunately for her, Cloud wasn't really the 'friend' type.

"HIIIIIIIII CLOUDY!"

Nearly jumping out of his seat, Cloud turned to his left and glared at the short-haired girl waving at him, the jittery hand-motions alluding to a different type of hyperactivity than Cloud was used to.

He was pretty sure that not even _Zack_ could compare to Yuffie on a good day.

Or a bad day.

To those two, it was the same difference.

"Hello." The quiet high school student barely gave the schoolgirl a second glance as he turned back to the open window, their history teacher bumbling within the classroom at the last second… as always.

"Cloud, Cloud, Cloud, Cloud-"

Cloud winced as the whispered chant slinked into his ear, fidgeting in his chair as their teacher began slamming down their supplies on top of their desk, his glare stringent and full of threats.

"Cloud, Cloud, Cloud, Clou-"

"What, Yuffie?!"

"Did you hear about my party?!" Grinning over at the moody boy over her text-book, Yuffie practically bounced in her seat with excitement. "I'm holding it next Friday… and you're TOTALLY invited!"

"… … … _Why?!_"

"What was that, Mr. Strife?!"

Random students began to giggle as Cloud's face turned an unorthodox color red, leaning his head down as their teacher glared hatefully at him.

"Nothing, Mr. Heidegger. Sorry for disturbing the class." Even if you haven't began conducting it and it's been a good half-an-hour already, Cloud finished internally, knowing he wouldn't _escape _the school with the amount of detention that one comment would earn him if he spoke it out loud.

"Damn straight you are…" Slamming down a particular large book onto his desk, Heidegger stroked his beard before walking around his desk and glaring at the class as a whole. "Now… about last night's assignment."

The collective set of students internally groaned as their teacher bellowed with laughter, making them cringe outwardly in disgust.

Cloud let his head fall on his desk as Yuffie gave him a large smile and wave, her meaningful enthusiasm only making the blond feel all the miserable.

'Isn't being a misanthrope supposed to drive people away?!'

Wondering if the Gods liked torturing him in particular, Cloud took out his notebook and stared at his homework, once again sighing in self-pity.

It certainly was hard being Cloud Strife.

* * *

"Aw, c'mon, Cloudy! WAIT FOR MEEEEEEE!"

Cloud attempted to ignore the short maelstrom of energy that was Yuffie as he basically ran down the hallway, backpack swinging behind him in a faux-cape motion. So into running from the frightfulness that was Yuffie on a mission, Cloud did not pay heed to the path in front of him as he turned a sharp corner-

"OOMPH!"

"GYAH!"

And collided into an innocent bystander, ramming his body at full force at the object/person in his way.

"Watch where you're going, yo!"

Brushing out blazing red hair from his eyes, the thinner boy trapped underneath Cloud's already-emaciated form glared at the apologizing student basically settled on his lap, recognizing his burden almost immediately. "What the hell, Strife?!"

"Sorry, Reno, Yuffie chasing me-GOTTAGOBYE!"

"CLOOOOOUUUUDDD!"

Reno stared as Cloud quickly scurried off of his person and ran down the rest of the hallway, Yuffie chasing after his heels as he stood up and brushed himself off.

"There're some weird kids in this damn school, yo…"

Shaking his head in exasperation, Reno decided he was better off acting as if he hadn't saw a thing and continued on his way, his backside still aching after the impact.

Strife was _on his own_.

* * *

Cloud gasped as he rounded another corner, barely missing a teacher carrying a series of books as he ran down another hallway, wanting to get home as soon as possible.

"CLOUD, WAAAAIIIITTT!"

"LEAVE ME ALONE, YUFFIE!"

"NOT UNTIL YOU TELL ME YOU'RE GOING TO MY PARTY!"

"I'M NOT EVEN PARTY-MATERIAL! I'D JUST BE STANDING IN A CORNER STARING AT EVERYBODY THE WHOLE TIME!"

"I DON'T CAAAAAAAARE!"

Finally skidding to a halt, Cloud spun around and huffed out a series of breaths as he stared at Yuffie, who actually looked no worse for wear.

"If I say yes, will you stop chasing me?!"

"_Possibly_…" Not liking the way she leered at him as she said this, Cloud simply hung his head and sighed.

"Fine, I'll come to your stupid party…"

"YAY! CLOUDY'S COMING TO MY PARTY!" Yuffie did a tiny victory dance before spinning around and venturing back to, Cloud presumed, her locker. "Party starts at 9; I'll be having it at my house, since my parents are out of town-"

"As is the beginning of any good clichéd hormonal teenager movie," Cloud interrupted, cranky from both running and not being allowed to go home _after _said running.

"_And _I expect you to be there, Cloud. No skimping out on me like you did last time, or the punishment will be _three times_ the amount of bat-shit crazy than the last was." Gulping at the thought, Cloud felt his masculinity shrivel up a little at the thought of a psychotic Yuffie (instead of the normally cheerful one who could be classified as only a _little _psychotic) chasing after him with a meat cleaver in her hands. "I'm so happy I'll be seeing you there, Cloud!"

"I'm sure…" The now-exhausted blond scratched his head as he fixed his backpack straps now hanging off of his shoulders and made it out to the courtyard, blue eyes drooping with exhaustion. "What did I ever do to deserve thi-"

"_Oh my God, it's SEPHIROTH!_"

'Annnnnnnd that's my sanity being flushed down the toilet, thanks. Glad my lack of luck seems to amuse the Gods so much… _really_.' Cloud sadly thought to himself as he sighed forlornly to himself.

The high-school student nearly hit himself over the head as he stared at the massive form situated in front of him, silver hair flowing in the wind as the gargantuan man lazily leaned against the school's gate, gaze set directly on Cloud.

Ignoring the excited murmurs rumbling around him, Cloud made his way towards the man now smirking at his enclosing figure, feeling as if he were somehow marching towards his inevitable doom.

"Hello, Cloud." Sephiroth slyly placed a hand at the small of the boy's back, ignoring the many angered (and jealous) glares sent in their direction as he steered the tiny teenager through the school's gates. "I've been waiting for you."

Sweat-dropping at the inherently suggestive tones slithering within the man's voice, Cloud gulped in self-righteous terror.

He knew being nice would have its share of consequences.

'_Damn it_.'


	3. Chapter Three

A/N: I… really have nothing to say. Lol. This chapter kind of wrote itself, and I really liked it came out. More SephxCloud bonding! And Yuffie!Plotting! And… Aerith!Plotting… dear sweet Jesus, all the women in this story are so devious! XD

Oh, and I forgot to mention Plot… Points…?

Wow, I just remembered this story has one of those. Lol. The joys of character-driven stories. ^.^

Disclaimer: Standard disclaimer from the last chapter still applies; also, I don't own "Misery Loves Its Company" by The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus. That's… a really funny name for a band now that I think about it. Wow. O.o;

* * *

"_You're persecuting me, showing hypocrisy-_

_I have a remedy for your insecurity._

_It's all the same, sadly, nobody works for free…_

_Am I the only one who realizes it's true?_

_Beat but I'm not broken;_

_Guide me through with your hand!_

_Lead with your words spoken;_

_Show me how to listen._

_Let your light shine through me-_

_Take this hate I can't release!_

_Help me make the blind see_

_Misery loves its company._"

-"Misery Loves Its Company" by The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus

* * *

Title: _**When You Walk Away**_

Chapter Three: _Misery Loves Its Company_

* * *

Yuffie hummed as she stared at the two disappearing figures waltzing out of the school's gates, plucking out her cell-phone from her backpack.

"Hey, Aerith… guess who got a certain someone's little brother to go to my party, just as planned!" The small short-haired girl bounced as she giggled, the voice on the other end of the line sounding just as ecstatic as she had anticipated. "Yeah, it took a little bit of, ahem, _persuasion _on my part, but he accepted! And you should have seen his face when _Sephiroth_ of all people came by to pick him u-"

Yuffie frowned as the voice on the other line began to ramble, interrupting her mid-sentence.

"You didn't know about Sephiroth coming to pick him up Aer?" Biting her lip speculatively, the schoolgirl tugged on her skirt, now becoming concerned. "He's not going to do anything stupid to our little Cloudy, is he?"

Sighing in relief as her friend slowly comforted her, Yuffie grinned at the sudden speck of information now given to her.

"So Sephy's interested in him, eh…?"

Nearly laughing maniacally at the onslaught of new and all-sorts-of-awkward situations now open for her to manipulate, Yuffie skipped out of the courtyard, giggling as Aerith began to moon over the opportunities now available to them.

Oh, would Cloud love her by the time they were finished with him…

* * *

Both man and boy discretely stared at the other out of the corner of their eyes, the awkward hanging between them both stifling and uncomfortable.

'_I wonder what he's thinking about…_' Cloud thought to himself as he fiddled with his backpack strap settled over his shoulder, trying to appear as relaxed as possible (and quite possibly failing to the nth degree). '_Why would he wait for me? Unless Professor Gast asked him to pick me up for whatever reason…_'

"Um…" Sephiroth, who was wondering how to best approach conversation with the usually-shy blond, immediately perked up when the other's soft tenor floated to his ears. "Is there… anything wrong?"

"Why would you think that, Cloud?"

"… … It's not every day I get picked up from school by you, Sephiroth. Did Prof-I mean, ahem, _father_ ask you to pick me up today?" Sephiroth had to stifle a smile at the adorable blink of confusion and innocent tilt of the head Cloud sent his way, blond spikes bouncing at the staccato beat of the tiny student's footsteps. "Did something happen to Aerith or Zack that I should know about? Or-"

"None of the above, Cloud." Patting the boy on the head (and smiling at the sudden frown painting the grumpy blond as he did so), Sephiroth shrugged in what he hoped was a nonchalant way. "I simply wished to see you and speak with you. Is that… bad?"

"I… guess not." Shying a bit away from the large man slowing his long strides to keep in step with the high-school student next to him, Cloud placed both hands over his right shoulder, now grasping the tough strap with a two-handed grip. "I just don't see what we have to talk about. We don't really have all that much in common, you know."

Sephiroth nearly gave a hysterical giggle, the words just about echoing his own from a day before, when he had been speaking to Zack in the wooded area Cloud loved to visit so much.

"I'm sure there are a lot of other people who have more in common with you and hold much more interesting things to say than me, Sephiroth." And there went the timid Strife-Self-Deprecation, blaring out at the older college student at full force. "I'm not really all that talkative, if you haven't guessed by now."

Sephiroth gave the boy a speculative glance, wondering if he realized just _who _it was he was talking to.

"Well, you seem to be doing a good job of being so now." Sephiroth commented in return, not realizing how curt his response was to a one Cloud Strife.

Hanging his head in slight shame, the boy quickly shut his mouth, turning his head to the side so as to stare at the various buildings they were passing by on their way to his home.

"So… how was your day at school?" The tall college student questioned as neutrally as possible, hiding his nervous demeanor behind his usual placid façade.

"… … … _Fine_."

Cloud didn't notice as Sephiroth sweat-dropped, mouth twitching at the now all too familiar word within his companion's vocabulary.

'Somehow, I feel as if the Gods are mocking me, and yet I don't know why…'

* * *

"I will see you later, Cloud." Sephiroth barely denounced his presence as they reached the Gast's home, the balcony bare for all but the small swinging chair on the farthest left side of the porch. After a good fifteen minutes of little to no conversation, Sephiroth had had all he could stand, his companion's stiff attitude giving him cause for retreat.

"Eh?" The oblivious blue-eyed teen pulled out his keys, twisting them in the doorknob before turning back around, still mid-sentence. "Aren't you staying for din-"

Cloud blinked at the now empty space next to him, hand stilling as he nestled over the doorknob.

"-_ner_."

Feeling a bit edgy about Sephiroth's strange behavior, Cloud quickly threw himself inside his home and locked the door behind him. After nearly five months of being ignored by the beautiful man, the sudden turnabout in personality was both startling and frightening and Cloud hoped to God that things would be going back to normal as soon as his 'friend' (he hesitated in thinking of the word in association to Sephiroth, knowing he wasn't particularly close to the man Zack called his best friend) got over whatever it was that had bitten him in the ass.

'_This is just temporary… don't get used to it, because it's only temporary…_'

Words that were supposed to comfort made the boy feel cold and empty; reminding him of the aching hole still festering within his chest.

'_This is only temporary…_'

Sliding down the door frame, Cloud laid his head against his raised knees, eyes blurring over with familiar tears.

'_But what I wouldn't give for it not to be._'

* * *

Sephiroth stared at the now locked door from behind the bush he was allocated, green eyes bright with determination.

"Is this becoming some sort of new strange hobby that I should know about, Sephiroth?"

The 21-year-old stalker-in-training internally flinched as he turned his head and was met with an all-too-amused Zackary Fair. Flicking the end of his nose, the dark-haired man nearly burst out laughing at the unfamiliar shocked expression gracing Sephiroth's face as his jaw dropped open, eyes wide and cheeks painted a very light pink from embarrassment.

"Hello Zackary." Sephiroth attempted to save face as he quickly stood up, brushing out any miscellaneous leaves from his long silver locks in an attempt to appear a bit more presentable than he already did. "How are you today?"

"Cut the crap, Seph, what the hell are you doing?"

Contemplating on whether or not it was in his best interest to let his friend in on his (hopeless) plans, Sephiroth gave the man a withering glare before finally giving in. "… … … Stake-out."

"Stake… out… and just what the hell are you staking out?!"

"I am waiting to see if Cloud shall be making his venture out into the woods today; I have a hypothesis in play, but first I am biding my time, watching my prey from afar." Nodding diligently, the out-of-touch hometown hero kept his gaze on the open-shade windows left open for his observation. "If my calculations are correct, by 5:15 he shall be moving about the house getting ready for his daily brooding session in the woods, out and about the house by 5:30; if that's the case, I think I have a plan ready at my disposal, but it is always better to veer on the side of caution…"

For a moment, Zack honestly stood behind the man speechless, not quite sure what to say.

"… … You do realize you're moving into unhealthy stalker territory, right Seph?"

Giving the younger man another dirty (if quick) glare out of the corner of his eyes, Sephiroth tossed his long hair over his shoulder and sniffed indignantly. "Do be quiet, Zack."

"Right-o. Just make sure not to get yourself caught in the process. Damn, we need to find you a hobby, Sephy-dear." Eye twitching at the derogatory nickname, Sephiroth stayed where he was, eyes still trained on the view leading inside his father's co-worker's home. "I, on the other hand, have an actual _date _planned. You know, those things that couples do to spend time with each other… that don't actually involve _stalking them _to try to get their attention."

"What is it you are trying to say, Zack?"

Zack was silent for a moment, wondering if his best friend was really as naïve as he portrayed himself to be at times or if this was another of Sephiroth's sarcastic inquiries meshed into a future snark that would sure to be headed his way.

After a series of oblivious blinks and furrowed glares aimed in his general direction, Zack decided that yes, Sephiroth was indeed that naïve.

"Nothing, Sephiroth; I am and have said _nothing_."

Without another word, the dark-haired 19-year-old left the older man to his thoughts, nearly giving into the urge of laughing out loud as he rang the doorbell set next to the door and waited patiently for his wonderful girlfriend to make her appearance.

Honestly, if the people of Midgar truly knew how clueless Sephiroth was in the ways of romance, Zack was pretty sure he would have been fan-raped by now. Luckily for the silver-haired behemoth, he was scary and carried through on his threats of violence and torture-

And even fan-girls held the most basic of survival instincts when it came down to it.

* * *

"Zack, what are you talking about?" Aerith quietly questioned as they both entered the quiet restaurant and were immediately seated at their table, the waitress smiling as she left them with their menus so that they could browse through the pages on their own accord. "Sephiroth and Cloud get along just fine-"

"Yeah, yeah, when whatever it is they're doing doesn't require _talking _or, you know, _interacting with each other_! I swear, I have never met two people who are as impossible to deal with as our little dream-team!" Quickly scanning through his menu, Zack immediately began to drool at the sight of all the glorious food staring up at him from its pages. "Cloud's too shy to take the initiative and Seph's so socially-retarded that he doesn't even realize that half of the stuff he says is either offensive or just plain creepy; honestly, I'm pretty sure if I locked them up in the same room together all they would do is stare at each other the whole time and blink."

Aerith giggled as turned the page of her menu, already having made up her mind about what she wanted. "Why don't you do that then? Make it an experiment of sorts to see if that's what would actually happen? For all we know, they might actually get along better than either of us would think."

"… And everyone thinks you're _nice_?" Zack shook his head, slapping the menu down on the table. "You are truly the epitome of Evil, Aerith."

"Why thank you, Zack." Aerith simply smiled as she handed her menu back to the waitress who had reappeared to take their orders, grass-green eyes twinkling with amusement. "I hope you remember all this the next time you go out with the boys…"

Gulping at the non-threatening-but-still-very-viable warning sitting between the lines of his girlfriend's joke, Zack guffawed loudly, hoping to mask his nervousness with a brash laugh.

Who would have thought Aerith, the neighborhood sweetheart, was so frightening underneath that warm exterior. Sipping on his water, Zack made sure to cancel his next guy's night out.

He'd rather not even take the _chance_.

* * *

Sephiroth quickly stood up as he saw the young man shuffle around the living room through the window, having changed his clothes earlier into a rather relaxed band tee-shirt and a stone-washed pair of holey jeans. Pushing back his unruly blond bangs away from his face, the older man felt his lips jerk upward at the adorable sight.

'Stare at later, must run now!'

With one last glance at the 16-year-old getting ready to head out, Sephiroth hurried past the front gate and practically sprinted down the street, not noticing as the door to the house swung open and revealed one suspicious Cloud Strife.

'_Did I just…?_'

Shaking his head, the young Strife shoved his hands in his pockets as he squirmed underneath his bomber jacket, feeling just a bit off-kilter.

'_I must be going out of my mind._'

* * *

Quickly plopping down in the blonds' usual seat on top of the large plateau, Sephiroth nearly keeled over in exhaustion. Straightening his clothes whilst trying to get his breathing under control, the silver-haired deviant waited for his prey to wander into the clearing as he usually did, green eyes trained ahead of him as his ears prickled for any sounds that seemed out of the ordinary.

After a good five minutes of waiting, the 21-year-old's patience was finally rewarded as a murmur of half-hearted words were heard from behind him, slowly turning his head until a tuft of blond hair and a pair of sky-blue eyes were presented to him. Relishing in the stupefied expression now lingering over Cloud's face, Sephiroth held back the smirk of accomplishment ready to bloom over his lips-

He could always gloat in the privacy of his own home, after all.

"Oh!" Cloud blushed as he stared at the large silhouette inhabiting his usual spot within his beloved woods. "Sephiroth! I… um…"

"I apologize." Sephiroth stood up, ready to make his way out of the clearing as Cloud began to inch away from him. "I did not know that you would be coming here. I'll leave if you would be more comfortable by yourse-"

"No!" Quickly shaking his head in opposition to the other man's suggestion, Cloud gulped feeling embarrassed beyond belief and not quite knowing why. "You were here first, after all! It would be rude of me to just kick you out…"

"Then we can both share the spot," grabbing the boy's hand before he could run back to his house (as Cloud's body-language clearly suggested he was going to do), Sephiroth practically pulled the boy down onto the grassy knoll, narrowed stare once again intense and probing "if there is no problem, of course."

"Ok." Was the squeaked-out response Cloud had to offer, blue eyes flinching before shifting over towards the expanding landscape in front of them. The silence that filled the air was tense between them, eluding to the obvious frustration both men held for the other at that moment (if for entirely different reasons).

"Could you…" The blond sighed as he turned to his forced-upon companion, his bomber jacket becoming stifling and way-too-hot. "Could you let go of my hand now?"

"Ah." Not even noticing the appendage still caught within his grasp, Sephiroth quickly let go of the smooth hand. "Once again, I apologize."

Cloud shrugged before the silence once again caught them both in its safety net, both men not used to having to carry any type of conversation whatsoever.

"Do you come out here often?" Sephiroth bit the bullet and let the question fall from his lips, leaning back on one arm as he stared at Cloud from the corner of his eye, taking in every uncomfortable fidget and shift.

"I… I guess. It's kind of my go-to spot when I just want to be away from everybody." The fidgeting only increased as the sentence continued.

"I suppose I am intruding, then…" Casually brushing off an imaginary piece of lint off of his leather jacket, long pale digits began fiddling with the zipper hanging mid-chest.

"No, it's, it's ok! I just… I wasn't expecting anybody to ever find out about this place. I've never seen anybody hang around here in the six months I've been here so I figured that nobody ever inhabited it." Blinking at the boy's automatic refusal, Sephiroth almost let the smirk that was just waiting to be unleashed finally slip out.

"May I ask you something, Cloud?"

"Um…" Green eyes followed small pale hands now pulling on blond locks of hair, long spikes of golden-yellow almost reaching the boy's clothed shoulders. "If you want to, I guess I can't stop you, right?"

"Why do you always wish to be alone?" The question bled with curiosity; if Cloud wasn't so sure that Sephiroth honestly did not realize just how rude the blunt inquisition fell from his lips, he would have thought the 21-year-old was mocking him. Hands fell from the boy's hair down to the blonds' lap as he turned to stare at the silver-haired student now unsure and restless, his own large blue eyes guarded.

"I apologize." Sephiroth breathed out, knowing he was on thin ice without having to be told for once. "I did not mean to pry."

"Yes, you did," Cloud smiled sadly as he stood up, brushing off his jeans as he did so. "Or else you wouldn't have asked it to begin with."

Sephiroth blinked as the boy stared down at him with exhausted eyes; eyes that held much more suffering and cynical knowledge than a teenager of only 16 years of age should have.

"I like to be alone because it's not complicated. There's no need to uphold any conversation or false concern; no hopes of saying the right thing at the right time. You don't even have to worry about your facial expressions or whether or not you need to be yourself of not." Wondering why he was being so honest to someone who had barely paid him attention save for these last couple of days, Cloud let his mouth go on auto-pilot instead of silencing himself as he usually did. "I like to be alone because I don't have to pretend to be interested in what other people are saying or feel as if I'm being stared at for being different."

"If I'm truly honest, I barely remember what it's like to be around people and have to play that game…" Letting his eyes drop to the grass beneath his feet, Cloud let out a small sigh. "Loneliness… loneliness just seems so much easier to deal with than… all this…"

* * *

"_Wait!" Childishly-large blue eyes watered as the boy chased after the adults rushing through the gates set in front of him, the wailing cries of another smaller figure disappearing within the black compact car just out of his reach. "Please, wait…" _

_A bulky dark hand appeared behind the tiny child, pulling him back inside the building. Damp blond hair hung over the boy's gaze in clumps, large raindrops falling from the tips of the wet tendrils and rolling onto the ground alongside the small tears running down the cherubic 8-year-old's cheeks. _

"_I didn't… even get to say goodbye…" _

* * *

'_When you're alone, you can't feel that pain of having someone you care about yanked away from you._' The 16-year-old blond thought to himself, trying to will away the old memories that still burned within the back of his head. '_I refuse… to go through that again._'

"I know what you mean." Sephiroth finally spoke, snapping Cloud out of his reverie. "When you only have yourself for company, there's no danger in being hurt unless you yourself are the one doing the hurting. But that kind of pain is easier to deal with than the type of hurt another person can inflict on you…"

Cloud blinked, tilting his head to the side as he stared at the silver-haired stranger set in Sephiroth's place; holding in his breath as if this were the first time both man and teenager were actually acquainted with each other. He remembered his conversation with Zack, the day after he had actually met the undeclared hero of Midgar.

* * *

"_Ah, you want to know more about dear old Sephy-poo." Zack chuckled as Cloud blushed, cheeks as red as the apple situated in his hands. "It's alright; noobs coming to this big ol' city, 'specially as young as you, always want to know more about Seph once they find out how popular and oh-so-smexy he is." _

"_That's not-"_

"_I don't mind tellin' ya, Cloud, I'm just teasing!" Ruffling his companion's feathered locks, Zack almost cooed at the indignant look on his young companion's face. "I could say that everything you've heard about the guy is absolutely true; that he's as fast and strong as you've heard and as gifted mentally as he is physically, but that's all superficial stuff, ya know? He's… he's not the social-butterfly type. Hell, if he shows interest in me, it's cuz I pushed him to notice me! Took years for him to consider me the bust bud he does now!"_

"_All the attention he gets, it's not by his own choice. He does what he thinks is the right thing to do in the situation at hand and it earns him more admiration than he thinks he needs. Truth is…" Zack sighed sadly as he turned his own apple within his hands, the bright red sheen of the fruit hypnotic and never-ending. "Truth is, Sephiroth is a pretty lonely guy underneath all that stoic armor. You only have to get to know him to realize it. He isn't the prince-charming type that all those fan-girls think he is; he's just trying to get by, just like everybody else in this god-forsaken city." _

_Cloud held in his questions at the wistful tone in his newfound friend's voice as he gently bit into the piece of fruit he was still grasping, eyes full of curiosity._

"_You actually remind me a lot of him, but at the same time, don't." _

"_Eh?!" The blond teen almost chocked on his apple, blue eyes now wide with shock. _

"_Weird, huh? When you get to know him, you'll see what I mean, Cloudy!" Patting the younger boy on the shoulder, Zack marched into the house, grinning as he called out to Aerith. _

_Cloud simply stared at the empty space beside him, confused beyond belief. _

_It was only when the apple that had been tightly held within his hands fell onto the ground with a large splatter did he break out of the hypnotic trance set upon him, blushing even further in embarrassed disbelief._

_One man shouldn't have so much power over him…_

_But Sephiroth was obviously no ordinary man._

* * *

"Yeah." Cloud turned back around, sitting back down next to the now-surprised man dressed entirely in black. "But being around people, at least sometimes, is not so bad."

Sephiroth held back a whoop of victory as Cloud settled into his space overlooking the large forest in front of them, letting the comfortable silence cloak over them like a blanket.

Maybe this mission wasn't as impossible as Zack first thought…

Knowing that if he didn't let it out he would quite possibly go insane, Sephiroth finally felt his lips tilt upwards, if only slightly.

Cloud felt his eyebrow rise as he stared at the older man now smirking beside him.

'_Why do I feel as if I should still be worried…?_'


	4. Chapter Four

A/N: Woo-boy, school = suckage, my friends. Luckily I'm taking classes I at least like, cuz if not… we'd all be screwed. 8O

Yeah. And I'm not talking the good way either!

Anyway… in this chapter; in which Sephy-poo gets all the more creepy with his little stalking-hobby, we are briefly introduced to a rather vile character whom I'm sure we all hate with a passion, both Cloud's and Seph's issues are clearly exploited (in a manner of speaking, of course), Zack's evil-ness is shown rather spectacularly and more plot-points are made (did I mention this is an A/U? because this is totally an A/U if you haven't gotten it by now, lawl).

Any questions, my dears? Lol. I didn't think so (yet).

I don't think I need to tell you guys about the whole criticism thing… you all get it. ^.^

Hope you guys enjoy the chapter! :)

Disclaimer: I don't own "27" by Fall Out Boy nor do I own the Final Fantasy series- we know this already, so why the hell do I have to keep doing this?! -.-;

* * *

"_If home is where the heart is_

_Then we're all just fucked._

_I can't remember…_

_I can't remember…_

_And I want it so bad-_

_I'd shoot the sunshine into my veins!_

_I can't remember the good ol' days. _

_And it's kind of funny… _

_The way we're wearing anchors on our shirts_

_When being anchored aboard just feels like the worst._

_My mind is a safe and if I keep it then we all get rich…_

_My body is an orphanage; we take everyone in. _

_Doing lines of dust and sweat off last night's stage-_

_Just to feel like you… _"

-"27" by Fall Out Boy

* * *

Title: _**When You Walk Away**_

Chapter Four: _27_

* * *

Cloud laughed as Sephiroth nearly stumbled over his own feet, the faint blush settled over his cheeks nearly translucent against his already-pale skin. Ignoring the comical glare now aimed towards him, Cloud continued to laugh his pretty blond head off, not sure how to take in the sight of a stumbling, dirty Sephiroth pouting at him without doing so.

"Ahem," clearing his throat in an attempt to regain the propriety he deserved, the silver-haired man brushed off his dirt-encased knee-caps and caught Cloud's arm in his unyielding grip, pulling him forward "if you are done here, then I shall take you home, Cloud."

"You don't have to do that." Shrugging off the bit of concern that lay hidden within Sephiroth's (for once) well-meaning gaze, the off-beat blond fixed the sleeves of his bomber jacket and strode forward, blue eyes a bit dimmer than usual. "I'm sure you have better things to do, and I don't think anybody's gonna stop and try to surprise-rape me at this time of day."

"You'd be surprised…" The older man muttered underneath his breath, making the young blond next to him shuffle straight up in shock.

"What was that?!"

"I said… just to be on the safe side…?" Sephiroth almost kicked himself in the shin as the statement came out of his mouth in a halfway sort of question, trying to save face by keeping his expression as neutrally bland as possible.

Cloud quirked an eyebrow as he stared at the blank faced college student beside behind him, leather jacket flowing around his long legs in a pseudo-cape motion. The man was absurdly handsome; there was no doubt about _that_, but Cloud still felt as if there was something Sephiroth was hiding from him…

The rest of their time was spent mostly walking in silence, though it was a comfortable silence; something Cloud was not used to, really. Most of the time he spent in quiet was spent thinking… brooding…

Aerith called it 'pouting', but he was insulted his older sister even associated such a word with such an introspective person such as himself. Finally noticing the familiar street sign indicitating that they were quite close to his home, Cloud finally turned to his companion, trying to will down the flush attempting to crawl over his cheeks as he narrowed his sights on silver and green.

"Will you… be picking me up tomorrow too, Sephiroth?"

"Would you _like _me to, Cloud?" The silver-haired giant smoothly questioned, trying not to take satisfaction in the burnt complexion of Cloud's face and ultimately failing.

Fidgeting with a particularly long blond bang hanging over his bright cerulean-colored eyes, Cloud let his gaze fall to the ground as they appeared before his house's winding gate. "I…"

Sephiroth leaned forward almost imperceptibly, venom-green eyes shining as the setting sun's dying rays hit his face at an odd angle.

Feeling oddly intimidated (though he didn't quite know _why_), Cloud quickly nodded before scurrying inside the gate and locking it, giving Sephiroth one last small smile in turn.

Watching the embarrassed 16-year-old hurry up the house's steps and slamming the door behind him without so much as a goodbye, Sephiroth simply smiled as he spun around and made his way to his own home, long silver hair trailing behind him like a cape of some sort.

Though he had not made the progress he would have liked, it was progress all the same.

'Soon… very soon…'

* * *

Sephiroth winced as he opened the door to his home (_house_) and slipped off his steel-toe boots by the coat-rack; the hallway (as always) completely dark. Peeling the large leather duster off of his person, Sephiroth did not even announce his arrival as he threw the warm garment on the coat-rack and strode into his also-dark living room.

The house itself was large and spacious, the rooms luxurious in their entire splendor. The paintings hung off the burgundy walls in classic juxtapose positions as candelabras and mini-statuettes lined the Victorian-styled shelves, complimenting the cream colored mini-pillars decorating the edges of the hallways beautifully.

All in all, it was a beautiful home to whoever lived inside it.

But even though _he_ lived there…

It just wasn't _Sephiroth's _home.

No personal pictures hung off the walls nor did any cute knickknacks clutter the shelves alongside the graceful items within the living-room; not like Professor Gast's home. The tiny family's house was smaller and much more well-worn; a sense of homeliness igniting its demure décor and the people who lived inside it with a magical glow that Sephiroth could not explain.

Even Cloud, who had only lived in the large city they called Midgar for barely six (now going on seven) months seemed to come alive within the home, holding the two other residents of the house as his family with barely any effort on his part whatsoever.

Sephiroth didn't want to _say _he was jealous…

Sighing as he made his way inside his bedroom (the clinical white walls washed out by the small objects Zack, Aerith and Angeal had bestowed upon him throughout the years), the now weary 21-year-old sat down on the bed and leaned forward, letting his head fall into his hands.

But he knew that would be the appropriate response at the situation at hand. Even he wasn't so firmly etched inside his own denial that he couldn't at least admit it to himself of all people.

This was the life he had become accustomed to; the solidarity of a cold home and piece his own life together himself. There was no hand to guide him or moral support of the parental kind to steer him in the right direction. Both of his parents had been gone for a good 15 years now, and quite frankly he could barely remember either of their faces.

But it wasn't all that bad he would think to himself on days where he could look past the loneliness and concentrate on matters of much more significant focus. He had friends (few friends, but friends all the same) who were willing to look past his apparent socio-retardation and see him for the person he was and not the person everyone else made up in the process.

Hell, even if it hadn't been for his friends (mainly Zack and Aerith) he would have never even taken any notice in Cloud…

Smiling sadly as he got off his nearly impeccable bed, Sephiroth grabbed a pair of sleeping pants from one of his bureaus (that were also organized spectacularly) and made his way into the bathroom.

All this introspection was beginning to give him a headache…

'I suppose I wasn't made to be the angst-ridden type.' The lone college-student thought to himself, the small bit of humor lightening his otherwise dismal outlook as he massaged his pounding temples. 'I shall get ready for bed now; tomorrow's plans must be made with the utmost care, and I must be in top form for the trials and tribulations ahead…'

His inner-Zack cackled at the thought, making the headache forefront in his head all the more painful.

'_You _would _make this kind of shit into some sort of mission objective, Seph-Seph! I didn't know Cloud was so effing dangerous! Dangerous to your libido, I mean! BWAHAHAHAHAHAHA!_'

"Shut up, Zack." Sephiroth growled out, feeling his sanity leak out through his ears.

Shutting the bathroom door behind him, Sephiroth couldn't stop the wince as the headache grew in strength.

'Even in my head I have no privacy…' Letting his pants fall to the ground, Sephiroth glared at his reflection. 'Somehow, I blame _you_, Zack.'

* * *

Zack nearly fell backwards from the force of his sneeze as Angeal and Genesis stared at him from the corner of their eyes, eyebrows raised up to their hairlines.

Blinking back at his two temporary-guardians/room-mates, the dark-haired young man scratched the back of his head.

'_Huh. Wonder what that was about?_'

* * *

Cloud stared out his window, knees to his chest as a silly grin still hung from his lips.

'_Don't you remember?_' A small voice echoed in the back of his head as his hands tightened their grip around his raised legs. '_This is only temporary._'

Letting the smile slowly fall from his face, the now despairing blond let out a small sniffle.

'_Temporary… his fascination with you, your time in this place with these people, your life here in Midgar… it's all temporary._'

And it was true.

There was no use becoming comfortable here with these people…

Yet why did this aching sensation not want to leave him alone whenever he thought about leaving this city?

'_One day, he'll grow tired of you just like everyone else did. Do you really want to go through that all over again?_'

Cloud squirmed uncomfortably, blue eyes filling with unshed tears.

'_No…_'

Squeezing his eyes shut, the blond slowly let out a small shaky sigh.

'_I can't be weak…_'

Steeling his grip over his knees, Cloud forced himself to calm down.

'_I can't get comfortable…_'

Letting his legs unfold over the bed as his arms fell off to his sides, Cloud finally lied down on the bed and opened his eyes, staring up at the tall ceiling above him. Watching the last of the sun's light fade away through the reflection of his window, blue eyes became accustomed to the darkness surrounding the tiny bedroom as Cloud lay awake to watch the night's inevitable progression.

'_Not when this is all just temporary._'

* * *

A fluorescent green alarm began to shrill loudly as the bright red numbers 6:15 am blinked on their screen, almost jumping up at the sound of the clash of noise emitting itself from its small body.

Sephiroth slowly opened his eyes, the darkness of his room both comforting and familiar even as the morning dawn peeked in through the large window leading out to his mini-balcony. Not even groaning at the disturbance of rest, Sephiroth smoothly propped himself up and shoved the blankets off of his lap as they fell from his chest. Running a hand through his never-ending silver locks of hair, the 21-year-old student bounced off bed and undressed out of his pajamas (which only consisted of a pair of old lounging pants, really) and shoved on his sweat-pants and dingy wife-beater.

Quickly running downstairs, Sephiroth almost tripped over his feet as Hojo stared up at him from the kitchen table, sipping on a obscenely large coffee cup.

"I see you're finally up." Hojo snarked before taking another sip, his dark beady eyes taking in his foster-son's appearance rather regally behind bifocal-lenses. "What's gotten _you_ so excited?"

"I am simply getting ready for my morning run." Sephiroth quietly deadpanned; his face now blank and completely neutral. "Did I disturb you?"

"No." The look on Hojo's face clearly stated that he did not believe a _word_ that was coming out of Sephiroth's mouth; the smirk now settled over his lips growing eerily by the millisecond. "I was just leaving for the day."

"Of course." Holding back the eye-roll threatening to overtake his expression, Sephiroth opened the refrigerator and grabbed the orange juice without a second's moment of hesitation. "Will I see you tonight?"

"No, but thank you for the concern." The smarmy voice was barely audible to the young man's ears as the sound of a chair screeching across the tile floor of their kitchen dominated the air. Footsteps echoed throughout the house before the slam of the front door reverberated rather achingly within Sephiroth's hearing, his posture sagging almost immediately. Downing the juice within his cup in a moment's time, the now-tired young man quickly washed the dish in a fit of obsessive-compulsiveness.

'He won't figure it out…' Sighing as he leaned over the sink, green eyes closed in tired worriment. 'He won't.'

Casting a quick glance over at the kitchen clock, Sephiroth jumped as the time read 6:30.

'I'm going to be late!' Rushing out the door whilst pushing on his sneakers, Sephiroth rushed towards his destination, which was still a good 15 minutes away. 'Damn it!'

* * *

'Not late, not late, not late…'

Quickly diving behind a rather large tree obscuring the familiar house from the rest of the houses on the block, Sephiroth nearly hissed as his leg hit a rough part of the bark attached to the tree he was hiding behind, ducking so as to minimize his chances of being caught…

Checking his watch, he sighed in relief.

'Just in time for-'

"Have a good day at school, Cloud!" Aerith's voice sweetly rang out the door as it swung open, pretty blond hair swaying in the wind as a large scarf obscured much of the young boy's face, his school uniform partially obscured by the familiar bomber jacket. Watching the 16-year-old loner presumably wave back at the originator of the voice, Sephiroth ducked further behind the tree until the boy made it halfway up the street and turned a sharp corner. Finally deeming it safe to go forward, Sephiroth dashed up the street as well, missing the pair of laughing green eyes staring at him from the still-open door of the Gast's home, the young girl stifling a raucous guffaw as she slowly re-entered her house and closed the door after her.

Hitting the corner, Sephiroth pressed himself against the wall of the gate beside him. Peeking over the side, Sephiroth watched as the boy continued on, not even turning back on a hunch of suspicion to being followed.

'How can anyone be that infantile?' Letting his silver hair fall over his nearly-bare shoulders, the 21-year-old stalker stared as the teenager continued on his merry way (though unlike Zack, he simply walked and didn't 'skip' his happiness to the world). 'Perhaps Cloud lacks the survival instinct…?'

Nodding to himself, Sephiroth once again strode forward until he hit a mailbox, ducking behind the large contraption as Cloud lazily crossed the street. An old woman stared at the silver-haired behemoth as he shifted his uncomfortably long legs beneath him, shaking her head before continuing on her way.

Sephiroth pretended not to even have noticed the look.

Sliding past the mailbox, the large college student quickly sprinted across the same street and blinked at the sight that greeted him.

Cloud had finally came to a halt as three large-bodied teenagers (though Sephiroth had to wonder) appeared before the boy, surrounding him almost immediately. Forming a fist with his right hand, Sephiroth leaned against the wall he was currently hiding behind as a large snarl formed over his thin lips. Watching the scene before him with narrowed eyes, Sephiroth almost leapt forward as one of the larger boys pushed the 16-year-old onto the ground and kicked him in the stomach, laughing.

The blond simply stared up at them before trying to stand back up, the kick having obviously hurt a lot more than it looked (and it had looked pretty vicious from Sephiroth's vantage point). As he stood back up, the dark-haired teen on the original tormentor's left side kicked him on his side before slapping him on the face, knocking the wind out of Cloud's lips.

'Another correct assumption on Zack's part.' Sephiroth growled as the last boy, an ash-brown haired teenager with a stupid smile spit on Cloud's face, laughing the loudest of them all before turning around and beckoning the other two boys to follow his lead. 'Why would Cloud not say anything about this to either Aerith or Professor Gast? And why does he refuse to at least defend himself in some manner instead of sitting there and taking their abuse?'

Giving the boy discrete look of shock, Sephiroth tilted his head to the side as Cloud limped his way to his feet, wiping the spit off of his face with the sleeve of his jacket while supporting his, what Sephiroth could only assume, now bruised mid-section with his other arm.

'There is a lot about you I still have to learn, Cloud…'

Diligently following the tiny teen the rest of his way to Midgar High, Sephiroth thought of how to breech this subject with Zack _without_ giving into the urge of massacring anyone in the process.

* * *

"Yo, Cloud!"

Not used to having his name randomly called out in the middle of a school day, Cloud reluctantly spun around, blinking as a pair of familiar green eyes and shock of red hair swayed towards him.

"Hey, Reno." Trying to edge his way closer to his locker, Cloud nearly fell backward as the redhead came into his personal bubble. "Uh… what's going on?"

"Ah, nothing much; just wanted to see how you got out of Yuffie's clutches yesterday." Brushing back a wisp of crimson from his bright gaze, the senior smirked as Strife's discomfort lay openly over his face. "She looked like she was ready to tear you a new asshole."

"Yeah. All over a stupid party…" Not noticing how Reno's face suddenly brightened at the word 'party', the oblivious blond shifted his backpack over his shoulders and tried reaching for his locker once again.

"So you're going?"

"Being forced to, is more like it." Cloud muttered. "Are you?"

"Most definitely!" Leaning forward once again, Cloud cursed as he fidgeted with the knob of his locker, his fingers becoming all the more clumsy the closer Reno came to his person. "And… I'll definitely be looking for you, Cloudy. Wouldn't miss a chance to see this cute face for all the alcohol in the world."

Giving the boy one last sharp smile, Reno finally snapped back, giving the boy a tiny wave. Cheeks burning in a combination of embarrassment and confusion, Cloud let his head fall forward as he thought back on what the senior had just said to him.

'_Did he… was I just…_'

Cloud blinked as he stared at his still-locked locker, blue eyes still glazed and confused.

'_Was he just hitting on me…?_'

Shrugging it off, the young boy went back to opening his locker and taking out the last book he needed for the day.

With the way his week was rolling, Cloud didn't even have it within him to even be shocked anymore.

* * *

"SEEEEEEPPPPPPPHHHHHH!"

Sephiroth internally winced as Zack practically glomped him through the crowd not-quite surrounding him (yet still creepily staring at him), trying to make it out of the lecture hall in one piece.

"I've come to save you from these savage beasts!" Zack turned towards the high concentration of girls (and boys, though they strayed off at a further distance than the females) and began making whipping motions with his right hand while his left hooked against his best friend's bicep. "STAY BACK, LADIES AND GENTLEMEN! NO, HE SHALL NOT MAKE-OUT WITH YOU OR FULFILL ANY OF YOUR SICK, SICK DESIRES! STAY BACK, I SAY!"

"Zack…" Knowing his friend was only over-exaggerating for his benefit (he honestly wondered how many lives Zack had saved from his unerring wrath acting like a complete idiot) but it was still embarrassing to be a part of nonetheless. "You do realize that if Angeal catches you acting like this again he will re-consider kicking you off the kendo team, right?"

Laughing uncomfortably at the thought, the dark-haired deviant scratched the back of his head as he thought of his very-serious coach and his never-ending speeches of honor and self-respect.

"I… have no idea what you're talking about, Seph. Acting like _what_?" Pulling his companion forward by the grip he still had on his arm, Zack grinned over at the silver-haired male who was now relishing the almost-quiet. "But aaannnnyyywaaayyyy… how's your Cloud-Stalking going, my friend?"

"It's not-" Sighing at the disbelieving glance his friend shoved his way, Sephiroth bit his tongue and changed his course of direction. "Fine. It's going _just _fine."

"Heh. So am I to believe that you're halfway to the boy's pants by now?" The doors of the school snapped open as both men enjoyed the sun now beating down upon them, trying to ignore all the stares sent Sephiroth's way. "Jeez, Seph, not even two weeks since I told you about the kid and already you've got instant access!"

Employing his special ability of not giving a crap whenever Sephiroth turned his death-glare-of-doom onto him, Zack let his hand fall off his friend's arm and pulled it behind his head with the other. "I knew I was doing something good when I asked you to-"

"You could have done it yourself. He _likes _you, Zack." Sephiroth glared at the set of girls giggling over at him and pointing besides the school fountain, hoping they all fell over and drowned in the small amount of water the monument provided. "From what I've been able to calculate so far he barely tolerates me…"

Hiding his mischievous grin behind a well-muscled arm, Zack bit back the comment just behind his lips.

'_That's what _you _think, Sephy-dear…_'

"How about this," dark spikes bounced as Zack rounded before his friend, amethyst orbs glowing with delight "let's set up an occasion where Cloudy _can't _escape your ever-sexy presence."

Giving the slightly shorter boy a queer stare, Sephiroth hesitated in asking just what Zack _meant_.

(Usually Zack's plans meant nothing but trouble and even if Sephiroth was socially-ignorant, that didn't mean he was _Zackary_-ignorant.)

"What…?" Was all Sephiroth was able to get out before his friend's large grin scared him into silence.

"_Double. Date._"

Zack laughed maniacally at the confused look his friend gave him, knowing his girlfriend was going to love him for this.

'_I'll admit it; if Aerith is the Queen of Evil, I must be the King. Poor, poor Cloudy… you have no idea what you're in for. Ku, ku, ku…_'

* * *

Cloud shifted within his seat as he sneezed, rubbing at his nose in a rather innocent manner.

'_What the…? Why is it the bad feeling I've had these past couple of weeks… has suddenly increased a good two-fold?_'

The blond silently slumped over his desk as the teacher gave him a dirty look at having been interrupted by his bodily reaction.

'_I get the feeling I've just been doomed to something, and I don't quite know why…_'


	5. Chapter Five

A/N: … … _Damn that was fast._ Lol. I had something to say that was more profound than that, but then my short-term memory loss kicked in and now I have no effing idea what the heck it is that I wanted to say. Urgh. Stupid short-term crap. *mumblemutterrazzlefrazzle* -.-;

Uh… I do know that I enjoyed writing this chapter very much, which is why it was probably done so fast. And so far it's the longest in the story! Though with the way I write sometimes… _yeeeaaaah_. Let me know, if anything; I tend to ramble. Lmao. Hope you guys enjoy. ^.^

Disclaimer: I don't own ze wonderful song "That Green Gentleman (Things Have Changed)", which IS owned by Panic! At the Disco. (Damn, I love that name!) I also don't own Final Fantasy blah, blah, blah… we know this already. On with the fic! :D

* * *

"_Things are shaping up to be pretty odd-_

_Little deaths in musical beds;_

_So it seems I'm someone I've never met._

_You will only hear these elegant crimes_

_Fall on your ears from criminal dimes;_

_They spill unfound from a pretty mouth._

_And everybody gets there, when everybody gets there,_

_And everybody gets their way…_

_I never said I missed her when everybody kissed her-_

_Now I'm the only one to blame._

_Things have changed for me, and that's okay._

_I feel the same, I'm on my way, and I say-_

_Things have changed for me, and that's okay…_"

-"That Green Gentleman (Things Have Changed)" by Panic! At the Disco

* * *

Title: _**When You Walk Away**_

Chapter Five: _That Green Gentleman (Things Have Changed)_

* * *

Cloud sighed as he silently trekked through the wreckage that was the student body in Midgar High, making his way to the familiar (and oh-so-cherished) school entrance that also served as one of the many school exits within their hellish institution.

Hellish was an appropriate way to label the place, especially since it had been one of the _last _places he would have liked to have been stuck in…

Yeah, he remembered that conversation with Gast; it was very memorable indeed…

* * *

"_Do I really have to?" Cloud implored, his light blue eyes and pouty face a deadly combination to a person as susceptible to cute faces as his guardian was. "Isn't there any other school that will take me?"_

"_I'm sorry, Cloud." Gast pushed his glasses up against the bridge of his nose as he gave the young boy his sternest glare (which really didn't amount to anything as Aerith cooed at the young boy right over his shoulder). "The school is the closest in the area, and before we can think of putting you up in any academies, it's best to see where you are at educationally and behaviorally."_

"_You don't trust me to be good?" Cloud kicked up the watery eyes an extra notch, thinking he had this in the bag._

"_Of course he does!" Aerith interrupted before pushing her father out of her way, green eyes glowing with amusement. "What he means is that he wants to see how you get along with kids your age and whether or not the classes are too easy for you! Think of it as his own science experiment on you."_

_Both Aerith and Gast pretended to ignore the loud gulp Cloud exhibited as they both continued to smile happily. "Besides, I don't see the big deal; I attended Midgar High for four spectacular years before heading off to university! I'm sure you'll have fun, Cloud!"_

"_Exactly!" Gast gave his young daughter a round-about hug and smiled at the morose blond in front of him. "And if Aerith had a good time at the school, I'm sure you'll have just as much fun son!"_

_Cloud conceded the battle once he heard the word 'son' enter the conversation. Though he had only been in their home for a couple of months, both father and daughter had treated him like nothing less than family. To hear a man who was not only trying to help Cloud but sincerely love him as well refer to him in such an affectionate way was the killing blow to the blue-eyed boy's campaign against public schooling (or schooling of any sort, actually)._

_Nodding timidly in begrudging acceptance, Cloud barely had time to prepare himself for the two-way hug he was pulled into courtesy of Aerith and Gast._

_Trying to keep the smile ready to burst its way over his lips at bay, Cloud gently reciprocated the hold with bashful force._

'_Maybe school won't be all that bad this time…'_

* * *

'_And maybe most dinosaurs weren't carnivorous beasts; just severely misunderstood._' Cloud thought snippily to himself as he nearly tripped over someone's outstretched foot-

Yet_ again_.

'_Lovely._'

Finally pushing his way out of the large double-doors, Cloud didn't even blink as the sight of a lazily-slouched Sephiroth leaned against the school's gates, eyes catching his the moment he stepped outdoors. The latent insecurities implanted within him from the night before caught the smile he had attempted to shoot over to his older companion and smothered it to death, causing a strange sort of tick to develop against his face. Sephiroth simply quirked a silver eyebrow as the boy quietly made his way over to the extremely tall man and waved, not even pausing as he made his way through the gates with a nervous pace.

"Cloud?" The now-confused college student didn't even hesitate to follow as the majority of the student body within the courtyard swooned/fainted at the sight of his backside and flowing silver hair. "Are you alright?"

And somehow, someway, Sephiroth knew-

"I'm fine."

That that dreaded word was going to haunt him once again.

Not noticing the odd twitch now infecting his companion's left eye, Cloud took to his age-old habit and began to fiddle with the straps of his backpack, his demeanor and strangely cold and distant.

He could still hear the voice reverberating in his head repeating the mantra he hated more than anything else-

'_It's all temporary… everything around you, it'll never amount to anything worth keeping; especially _this_._'

But…

'_I _want _to keep this…_'

And it was the truth.

Coming to a complete halt, Cloud blinked as Sephiroth nearly continued on without him, long limbs still geared for continued motion. Bedraggled green eyes met tired blue, Cloud's emotional exhaustion pouring over from his expression without him even meaning to.

'_Can't I just have this one thing?_'

Instead of holding back the tiny grin wanting to split over his smooth pink lips Cloud let his expression morph as it pleased, watching as the confusion slowly bled from Sephiroth's own expression and holding a small unsure beam of its own.

"How was your day at school today?" Cloud asked uneasily, not sure if he was doing the right thing and not caring for once in his life.

"It was very educational." Sephiroth replied, shoving his hands in his pockets as Cloud laughed in response to his dry humor. Shrugging his shoulders, the older man took in the candid openness within the schoolboy's expression and felt a small thrill of success run through his lanky frame. "I was nearly mobbed, as usual, I was lectured by people who spent half of the time they were supposed to be teaching me gawking openly at me instead, as usual, I was openly annoyed by Zack, as usual, I proceeded to beat him in front of people, as usual-"

"Wow, pretty normal day." Cloud sarcastically remarked, the softness of his tone creating a light lilt that Sephiroth had never heard before. "I'm sure that just happens to _everybody_…"

"I wish." The college student muttered, running a free hand through his lengthy fringe. "Maybe then other people would be stalked and know how creepy it feels."

'IRONY.' Sephiroth didn't even wince as he heard the word begin to ring through his head, the voice sounding suspiciously like Zack's. 'THIS IS IIIRRROOONNNYYY!'

Scoffing at his own thoughts, the silver-haired prodigy merely countered in return, 'Never called myself a saint…'

And truly, he hadn't.

Yet.

Tilting his head to the side, Sephiroth gave the boy a predatory glance. "And you? What's a normal day for Mr. Cloud Strife?"

"Uh… well… it's nothing nearly as exciting as yours…" Or awe-inspiring, Cloud thought to himself, wanting to flinch back in shame. "I got an A on my History paper…"

"That can't be all." The 21-year-old prodded, thinking back on this morning's sight and the accompanying rage that had settled over his stomach as a result. "I distinctly remember high school being a lot more interesting than just papers and exams…"

"I'm sure for you it was." Cloud stated, sighing in relief as he saw his house over the distance.

"Cloud-" Sephiroth could also see the impending house and decided that dropping the subject in favor of one much more pleasurable would have to do; if he had his way, he would have the boy cornered tonight and there'd be nothing Cloud could do about it. "I do have something to ask you before we get to your home."

"Yeah?" The blond sincerely hoped that the man wouldn't try to delve deeper into his school life, somehow knowing that that would cause nothing but problems. Everyone knew that once Sephiroth became invested in someone, you did not mess with them.

_At all. _

And unfortunately for Cloud, he was a fist-magnet with a side of easy-target printed on his forehead.

That… and how embarrassing was it to admit to someone like Sephiroth that you got beaten up on a daily basis? He hadn't even told Aerith and his… father for gosh sakes. Perhaps it was because he was so used to it that he didn't even put up a fight anymore or told people about them, but it didn't dissuade from the fact that they did indeed happen and he would rather _die _than look Sephiroth in the eyes and tell him such a humiliating fact.

He didn't want to be pitied or protected; no, it was better that such a subject was avoided at all costs…

"Are you… going to be doing anything tonight?"

Cloud's head whirled to the side in a (literal) break-neck speed, his large blue eyes suddenly wide and gleaming.

"You… huwah?"

Sephiroth let his nervousness hang in the back of his head as he gave the boy a smooth smile and stopped in his tracks once more; this time, of his own accord.

"I wish to know if you will be occupied for the night."

"No…" Letting the word drop of his tongue in a slur, the teenage student let his mouth fall slightly open and stared at his taller counterpart, his aged leather jacket and skin-tight jeans clad with knee-high leather boots contrasting greatly with the boy's puffy jacket and slouchy high-school uniform. "Not… really…"

"Zack and I wish to invite you and Aerith on an excursion if such is the case. Are you willing to come along?" Willing? Excursion? Sephiroth inwardly rolled his eyes at the words. Perhaps Zack was right; he really _was _too uptight…

"I… I don't think I'd fit in with the three of you." Cloud back-pedaled, paling incessantly at the thought. "You'd probably be better off without me."

"And have to watch Zack and Aerith's public displays of gratuitous affection by myself? No thanks." Using his height as an advantage, the older man leaned over the tiny blond head and let his smile become edged with determination that usually got him his way. "I insist that you accompany us."

"I'm sorry." Cloud nearly bowled over himself as he turned around and power-walked past the gate surrounding his home, trying not to notice Sephiroth's looming form still following him. "I just don't want to over-crowd the three of you. You're all always watching out for me… you don't need to hang out with me too."

Not understanding the saddening undertone within Cloud's voice, Sephiroth continued forward until the young boy opened the door and turned around, quite willing to follow him into the house uninvited if he had to and trailing after him until he received a solid yes.

"Cloud, I wish for you to accompany me and I will not accept no for an answer." The older man plainly stated, not caring about social etiquette anymore and simply demanding the younger man's acceptance instead.

"Sephiroth…"

"Ah!" Both man and boy nearly jumped out of their skin as a sharp baritone cut through the air, turning towards the bifocal-clad old man that had taken Cloud into his home and allowed Sephiroth a haven away from all the stresses of his life in the form of this house and his family's company. "Now this is a surprise; not only am I greeted by the sight of my actual son, who I haven't seen in a good two weeks, but my yet to be adopted child whom I haven't seen in even _longer_! How have you two boys been whilst I've been gone! Taking care of Aeri and the house, haven't you?"

"Of course… dad." Cloud blushed at the large grin that overtook Gast's face at the sound, his eyes grateful and full of bashful affection. "How long have you been home?"

"Oh, only about an hour… got to get back to the lab soon, though." Giving the blond a miserable glance at the thought of having to leave so soon after having been gone for so long, Gast instead decided to lift up the mood with his next mini-announcement. "But I'm pretty sure we're going to be reaching a break-through any day now! And after that, you all will have me for as long as you like!"

"Or until you go off on your next experiment," Aerith chirped, smiling as she entered the living room from the kitchen. "Then what will we do without you?"

"You'll still have three strapping young men ready to entertain you, Aeri." Ruffling his son's hair, Gast nodded as he gave Sephiroth an appraising glance. "But that's a long way off. Sephiroth, what brings you to this part of the woods?"

"I was escorting Cloud home." Sephiroth stated, not finding anything wrong in his intentions so as to alarm the old man whom had practically raised him in his parent's stead. "Since you are here…"

'_Oh no._' Cloud thought to himself, noticing the subtle changes in the college student's face and not knowing how to take the sudden sharpness of his features.

"Would it be alright for Cloud to accompany Aerith, Zack and myself out tonight?"

'_Fudgity-fudge-fudge._' Hanging his head in shame, Cloud didn't even look up to see Aerith's face, whom he knew was grinning maniacally at the invitation. '_Why me?_'

"I suppose as long as all of you are back at a decent hour I have no qualms… but why the sudden politeness, Sephiroth?"

"Is that… not how one proposes a meeting towards one's parent in this situation?"

"Well, if it's of the romantic sense, than yes, you would have it right on…" Gast nervously laughed before immediately tensing, noticing Sephiroth didn't even flinch at the teasing gesture or implication of words. "Unless… _Was it_ a romantic proposition…?"

Cloud's head snapped up so fast he felt the back of his neck ache from whip-lash.

Aerith simply giggled, bouncing with glee.

"Would that be alright?" The silver-haired man leaned in closer as Gast's eyes widened underneath his wire-frames, Aerith's giggling turning into a full-fledged cackle.

Before Gast could answer everyone turned as a large thump reverberated through the air, a tuft of spiky blond hair shooting up from the ground as a small thin body twitched on the floor.

"You should probably pick him up and take him to his room." The chestnut-haired girl laughed under her breath as she stared at her now-unconscious brother sprawled out on the floor, shaking her head as her father nearly fainted as well. "We'll talk once you come back down."

Sephiroth didn't even hesitate as he hauled the boy up into his arms and made his way upstairs, long arms encasing the tiny teen's form almost entirely.

"Well…" Gast cleared his throat. "At least it was him and not Zack. Now _that _would have been _awkward_."

Aerith's laughter was heard all the way down the street, making some neighbor's stare out their windows in confusion.

* * *

After gently placing the young boy onto his bed and watching him for a moment, Sephiroth took the chance to mosey around and take in the tiny room that fit its equally tiny owner. It wasn't exactly _small _per se, but for someone like Sephiroth who was on the brink of hitting a good seven feet tall, it was _diminutive _to say the least.

Random band posters decorated the walls of the boy's inner-sanctum along with doodles and written out pieces of lyrics to songs from said bands, giving the room a bit of edge. There was a small amount of clutter here and there; a random shirt hanging over a bed railing, scattered colognes and _moisturizers _lying over the teen's bureau (_Moisturizers? Who would have thought?_) along with a small stack of shoes piled in the corner of the room, untied laces hitting the floor in an array of colors.

It suited the young boy where as his own room did not.

Fingering a smooth spike laying limply over the unconscious teen's forehead, Sephiroth let out a rather fragile smile before backing away.

He _would _have his date. Sephiroth was _not _someone who was easily denied, damn it. Not even by Cloud.

Wondering if he was about to be reproached, Sephiroth made his way out of the room and downstairs, hoping he would still have two good friends by the end of this conversation.

* * *

"Why so nervous?" Aerith gently asked as she set down a cup of tea in her friend's hands, smiling just as soothingly. "Afraid we'll take you out to pasture?"

This time it was Gast who laughed instead of Aerith, his fatherly disposition easy-going and non-threatening. "Yes, because if anyone could do it, it would be Aerith and I."

"I… suppose I did not entirely think things through in terms of how the both of you would react." Sephiroth carefully sniffed the tea, trying to discern if it was poisoned or not. "I did not wish to create unnecessary problems…"

'But it won't stop me from courting the boy, just so you know.' Was the unsaid sentence finisher that was lingering at the end of statement, both father and daughter knowing without having to be told that Sephiroth would do what he wanted and not care whether or not his own actions would hold any ill consequences in the end.

"As if we would have any objections. Right father?" Aerith smiled pleasantly at her father, who nodded in response. "As long as your intentions are honorable and you don't hurt our little Cloudy, I'm perfectly ok with it!"

Suddenly snapping her head towards the silver-haired collegian who was now sipping on his tea, Aerith gave him a sharp glare that seemed both scary and unfitting on her fair, delicate visage.

"Your intentions _are _honorable _right_?"

Quickly nodding so as to not raise the younger woman's ire, Sephiroth inwardly sighed in relief.

It would not do to have Aerith as an enemy…

You never knew _what _she was capable of underneath all that sunshine and rainbow crap she liked to spew all the time.

"So, the four of you including Zack are going to be going where…?" Gast gently asked, gaining back both college-students attention.

"Oh, we'll just be going out for dinner. I think Zack said something about wanting to go to the arcade to try out some new dance-dance something, but I don't know really know yet… When he called me, he was being very… vague." Aerith shrugged, now back to the smiling little flower girl that everyone knew and loved.

"Well, if Cloud's alright with it, then so am I." Standing up, the older man smiled at his two charges before making his way out of the kitchen. "I, on the other hand, have to get back to the lab. Have fun, you two! And try not to scare poor Cloud to death. I just got the boy to start opening up to us, after all…"

Watching her father stroll out of the house, Aerith grinned. "Oh, he'll be alright with it."

Sephiroth quirked up an eyebrow in response, now a firm believer that this was _definitely _not a woman who should be messed with at any cost.

Aerith simply smiled in return.

"More tea?"

Sephiroth sweat-dropped, shaking his head.

* * *

Cloud groaned as the surface beneath him became less substantial and his body began to quake, eyelids fluttering with wakefulness.

"-oud!"

'_Huh…?_'

"Get up, Cloud!"

More shaking, this time much more violent than before.

"Cloud!"

"Huh?" Cloud finally mumbled out loud, still a bit out of it. Aerith's pretty green eyes were the first thing he could focus on after being out for who knows how long, long thick lashes quivering as the a smooth guffaw escaped her lips. "Wha…?"

"You've been out for almost an hour, Cloud. It's time to wake up! No more dilly-dallying around…" Pulling the unstable 16-year-old onto his feet, the cheeky brunette let the boy hang onto her for a second in the name of stability. "We have to get ready, after all."

"For what…?"

"For our dates, of course!"

"… … …"

Cloud seemed to take this in for a moment, eyes still half-lidded-

"WHAT?!"

And then the shock nearly killed him.

Blue eyes nearly bugged out of their sockets as they rolled around, his internal memory going into hyper-drive as he thought back to _before _he became personally acquainted with their living-room carpet and nearly fainted again.

"No." The blond stuttered, trying to get out of his older sister's impenetrable grip. "No, no, no, no, no, no, no-"

"Cloud, calm down-"

"No, no, no, no, no-"

"Cloud, isn't this what you wanted-"

"No, no, no, no, no-"

"Cloud…"

"No, no, no-"

_**SMACK! **_

Cloud blinked as he held onto his now reddening cheek, staring at Aerith with a gaped expression that rivaled a suffocating fish.

"You ok?" Aerith sweetly asked, eyes glittering with humor.

"… … I think so." Working out his jaw, the now non-hysterical blond nodded absently in startled bemusement. "Did you just-"

"Yes. Yes I did."

"Oh. Thanks."

"It's what big sisters do." Aerith cheerfully supplied, moving away from her little brother to hold out the outfit which she picked out personally. "Now what do you think? I think it'll make you look cute. Right? Right. Cute it is."

Without having even interjected any sort of comment (but knowing that even if he did it wouldn't have made a difference) Cloud nodded and grabbed the dark blue lofty jeans and light blue tank-top and white zip-up hoodie with intricate black and gray symbols crawling up and around the material.

"Aerith?" Freeing himself of his jacket (which he hadn't even had the chance to take off before face-planting onto the floor), the boy grabbed the clothes before making his way to the bathroom in a strange sort of daze. "Am I dreaming?"

"If you are," the young woman giggled "you better hope you don't wake up."

* * *

"YOU DID _WHAT?!_"

Sephiroth blinked as he stared at his best friend, not sure why he was being yelled at. "I spoke with Gast and Aerith. Was that an inappropriate thing to do?"

"No, not that!" Zack flailed as he almost tripped over his sneakers, barely having pulled on his shirt after Sephiroth had dropped the bombshell he did over his head and not even had the cohones to even seem _embarrassed _by it. "You told Cloud you were-"

"I suppose in a back-handed sort of way." Sephiroth shrugged, not seeing what Zack was overreacting about. "Why? Was _that _inappropriate?"

"Seph, when you're courting somebody, you usually let them know face-to-face that you're doing so… _privately_."

"But I did let him know face-to-face. And it was at his home, so it was private. I do not see why you are so angry."

"… … Seph you surprise-attacked him by announcing to his _dad _before you even told _him_ that you wanted to date him. Hell, the kid didn't even know you _liked _him like that before you asked him out on a date that he most likely didn't even know was really a date! Poor kid probably doesn't know _what _to think right now!" Once again waving his arms around in a strange motion, the slightly younger dark-haired man gurgled as Sephiroth still stared at him as if he were alien. "My point is, Seph, you caught Cloud completely off-guard and that's most likely gonna put him more on edge than just taking him out without all the hub-bub would have."

"So…" Sephiroth still appeared to be confused. "I messed up…?"

Zack hung his head, amethyst-colored eyes rolling in exasperation. "A little bit, Sephy-poo. Just a little bit. But we can fix this."

Although he had been ready to punch the younger man in the face once the name 'Sephy-poo' had escaped his lips, the 21-year-old restrained himself as he listened to the rest of his friend's sentence. "What do I do?"

"Well, you're going to have to be extra assertive tonight; if you think Cloud was closed off just trying to be friends with him, then he's going to be ten times worse now that he _knows _you have romantic inclinations in mind…" Pulling at a random lock of ebony-black hair, Zack rolled his eyes upward. "Not that I think you can't handle that, but now you have to realize you're probably walking on a mine-field. Kid's full of 'em once he lets you get close enough…"

"Hm?"

"Oh, sorry." Smiling bashfully, Zack nearly hit himself after hearing his own slip. "Well, the best thing you can do is be yourself. I mean, _really _be yourself. Just keep prying to he either explodes on you or kisses you."

Sephiroth gave the man a baleful glare, silver hair hanging over his face like a cloak.

"I mean it! Just go for it! He keeps a lot of stuff inside, Seph; Aerith told me so!"

Feeling as if he had just gotten conned somehow, the older man nodded his hesitant acceptance. Zack patted him on the back in a sign of camaraderie, knowing that this night was either a disaster in the making or the greatest night of Cloud Strife's life.

'_Hopefully you don't hate me for this, kid…_'

* * *

Aerith pulled back her long hair and smiled, tying the pink sash at the top of her head into a tiny bow that suited her needs perfectly.

"How do I look?" She pondered quietly, watching Cloud from his spot on the bed through the mirror in front of her.

"Pretty." Cloud gave one of his trademark smiles, knowing his older sister would find no lies within it. Watching her pull at her jean skirt, white tank-top and pink half-cardigan out of the corner of his eye, Cloud nearly had a heart-attack as a knock from downstairs escalated into Aerith's room.

"They're here!" Aerith announced unnecessarily. "Come on, Cloud!"

Running a hand through his thick fluff of golden-blond hair, the fretfully shy boy followed after the blur of pink, white and blue rushing down the stairs and watched the exuberant girl open the door and jump into her boyfriend's arms, the dark figure behind them patiently awaiting his own date to appear. Cautiously making his way to the last stair, Cloud stared at the tall figure towering over the boyfriend/girlfriend duo absconding its path, blue eyes guarded and unfettered.

"Hey there, Cloud-ster!" Though Zack attempted to act as the buffer between the two males, Cloud was not having it, knowing without a doubt that this had most likely been one of Zack's half-baked schemes gone wrong. "Ready for a night of fun and magic?"

"Absolutely." The 16-year-old deadpanned as he moved forward, shoving on his jacket which he had remembered to pick up in his room after showering. "I'm ready if you guys are."

Zack winced at the boy's tone, knowing he was most definitely going to be hearing it later from _all _sides.

Sephiroth nodded, grabbing the boy's arm before he could rush past him. "I believe it is customary for us to begin the night by holding hands. Would this be pleasant to you?"

Cloud quite literally gapped (again).

"Uh…"

Sephiroth raised his eyebrows, ignoring Zack's snickering as Aerith hit him on the shoulder.

"O… k…?"

The blond boy barely had a chance to gather himself before his left hand was grabbed and held in a tight grip, the steely warmth of the other's non-gloved hand warming Cloud from the inside out. Pulling the teen forward, Sephiroth didn't even wait to see if the couple behind them was following the pair as he marched over to his car and opened the door for Cloud.

Not used to being handled like a (he wasn't going to say girl, damn it!) piece of glass, Cloud slowly entered the large SUV, jumping as Sephiroth closed the car door behind him. Zack seemed to be laughing himself silly as Aerith pulled him into his own car, the young girl smiling at him as they walked past.

"Please buckle up." Sephiroth's voice boomed within the large space of the car, his eyes serious as ever. Slowly pulling the seat-buckle over his body, Cloud bit his lip in nervousness.

Both men stared at each other, not sure what to say.

"Uh…"

Sephiroth started the car as Cloud began to tap a rhythm on his thigh.

"So… where are we going?"

"Dinner." Sephiroth answered easily enough, not noticing as Cloud continued to stare at him, waiting for a much more specific response.

"Dinner where…?"

Silence reigned as Cloud, who felt too stifled by the quiet, stared at the man behind the wheel whose concentration seemed solely on the road.

"Surprise." Sephiroth muttered, not entirely comfortable with being stared at by Cloud. Strangers he could stand, but this was supposed to be different type of affair… right? "Do you have any more questions?"

Once again Sephiroth didn't notice the snappy quality of his tone, causing Cloud to shut down almost immediately. Wondering if he should have brought his mp3 player as he eyed the radio in front of him, Cloud let out a tiny sigh.

'_This is going to be a looooong night._'


	6. Chapter Six

A/N: I feel freeeeeee… Ah, don't you love it when you're free of previous obligations?! THE SENSATION IS SEX-ALICIOUS INDEED! ^.^ So because of the amount of non-baggage, you guys get another chapter of WYWA! Wow… that's a weird acronym. -.-; W/e lol. Is it strange that I also made a playlist for this story in my ITunes? Omg, with the way I have things planned it's like 20 chapters… but I only wanted 10… WTF BRAIN?! T.T

We do have a person from a different game making a bit of a cameo, but just for future reference, I don't know if he'll become a permanent fixture in this fic. Let me know if you guys see some potential in his being here… It all comes down to the readers after all XD (and trust me, if you play FF/KH, you'll know immediately who it is X3). Also, plot-points and DDR will be included in this chapter. I know… it kills me too. Lol!

Disclaimer: Don't own Final Fantasy (the entire series wtf) nor do I own "Here is Gone" by The Goo Goo Dolls. Shit. :C

* * *

"_You and I got something-_

_But it's all and then it's nothing to me…_

_Yeah._

_And I got my defenses _

_When it comes to your intentions for me…_

_Yeah._

_And we wake up in the breakdown _

_Of the things we never thought we could be…_

_Yeah…_

_I'm not the one who broke you-_

_I'm not the one you should fear-_

_We've got to move you, darling._

_I thought I lost you somewhere,_

_But you were never really ever there at all…_

_And I want to get free;_

_Talk to me._

_I can feel you fallin'… _

_And I wanted to be _

_All you need…_

_Somehow here is gone._"

-"Here is Gone" by The Goo Goo Dolls

* * *

Title: _**When You Walk Away**_

Chapter Six: _Here is Gone_

* * *

"We're here."

Sephiroth's booming voice made the boy jump, his eyes still slightly unfocused from the daydreaming he had been indulging in during the car ride. The older man said nothing else as he smoothly unbuckled his seat-belt and strode out of the car, making Cloud feel intensely inadequate without having to do much else. Struggling with his own buckle, Cloud nearly fell out of the car as Sephiroth opened the car door for him and patiently waiting for the boy to untangle himself from the mess he was creating.

'_This… is so embarrassing._' Cloud thought to himself as he stumbled out of the large SUV (which made him feel just as miniscule as its owner did) and nearly face-planted (once again) onto the sidewalk before him.

Gently grabbing his date's arm so he could stabilize himself, Sephiroth kept his grip firm and relentless, even as Cloud attempted to subtly dislodge himself from the protective hold.

"Are you alright?"

"I'm fine!" Cloud breathlessly replied, the rose-colored flush painting his cheeks prettily with an invisible brush. Not noticing the sudden subtle widening of eyes or straightening of lips on his companion's part, the struggling blond finally managed to release himself from the death-hold Sephiroth had on his person and stared at the meek dinner in front of him. "Oh… I know this place. It's my favorite-"

Turning back to the still-stunned silver-haired man, Cloud wiped the bridge of his nose with the back of his hand and smiled, trying to reign in his embarrassment so as to not overwhelm himself before the older boy staring at him.

"How did you know? I don't think I've even told Aerith about this place…"

'By stalking you for hours on end without you noticing, of course. How else would I know?'

Sephiroth shrugged. "Lucky guess, I suppose."

'_LIES. YOU SPEAK NOTHING BUT LIES!_' Screamed Not-Zack's voice within the vestiges of Sephiroth's mind once again, making him internally scoff at the would-be insult had it been aimed at anyone except Sephiroth.

'You're point being…?'

"Well, you must be really good at guessing then." That same smile that nearly incapacitated Sephiroth the first time he had saw it aimed his way reappeared over Cloud's face, the tension slowly seeping out of his body as the familiar destination seemed to put him at ease.

Having the high-school boy relax in his presence was like a drug Sephiroth decided as he placed his hand on the small of the boy's back and pushed him forward, ignoring the stiffness of Cloud's limbs as he did so.

"It's cold." Sephiroth stated in order to excuse the sudden presence of his hand on the boy's back as he opened the door for the younger man and practically tossed him inside the establishment before them. One of the waiters gave Sephiroth the stink-eye after they smiled quickly at the man-handled teenager stumbling inside the café, automatically recognizing Cloud's outrageous hairstyle and unforgettable sky-blue eyes.

"Well fuck, if it ain't Cloud Strife!"

Cloud nervously glanced at the café's owner, Cid Highwind, who had popped out of nowhere just as the still-unknown waiter's glare became all the more ugly, prompting Sephiroth to glare back at the younger man. "H-hi…"

"Damn, what did you do, steal this one out of a factory?! Least ya got good taste, even if though I didn't think ya swung that way…" The older blond-haired man stage-whispered, ignoring Sephiroth's large form in its entirety and concentrating solely on Cloud's practically-shaking figure. "Ya both can sit right down wherever the hell ya feel like! Cloud, you know as my favorite customer you always have first pick!"

"Thank you, Mr. Highwind…" Cloud grabbed Sephiroth's hand and pulled him in the opposite direction of the crazy café owner and the glaring waiter who was now shoving his way past the other servers and flailing about as he spoke loudly in the Highwind's inflated ear.

"He seemed… rather rambunctious." The silver-haired 'gentleman' stated before sitting down opposite of the nervous blond, his smile, which was meant to pacify the other boy's nerves, only multiplying them without meaning to.

"Yeah… but the old man means well." After that comment, the schoolboy became disturbingly silent, making even Sephiroth slightly fidgety within his slightly lumpy booth seat.

Sephiroth, who was also not used to having to be the one to strike up conversation in these kinds of circumstances, glanced around the small restaurant a bit lost, not sure what to say.

"So… when are Aerith and Zack meeting us here?" Cloud quietly asked as he began to playwith the fork and spoon situated in front of him, not noticing the warm stare the older man was casting him at the adorable show of childishness.

"Well…"

* * *

"Do you think we did the right thing just leaving the kid with Seph like that?"

"I don't know, Zack. What do you think, it _was_ your idea." Though the comment was sarcastic and cutting Aerith's tone held none of the vigor one would assume such a statement required to truly deal any sort of blows against another person.

Zack flinched as he lowered his head, scratching the back of his head in a nervous gesture that he was sure he would never get rid of.

Hell, if he had been standing he knew he would be straining the crap out of his calves with the amount of squats necessary to deflect the nervousness he now felt in result of his own half-baked plan.

"I just… don't know if Seph's ready to place himself in a relationship ye-"

"If you weren't sure," Aerith cut him off as the waiter arrived at their table, "you wouldn't have suggested the idea to begin with."

Nervously laughing to hide his own discomfort Zack wondered if he should remind Aerith just how impulsive he could be.

'Probably not a good idea my friend…'

And if the way the young woman was eyeing him was any indication, keeping quiet had certainly been the correct response.

* * *

"About that…"

Cloud began to fidget again, this time with _purpose_.

"We will be meeting up with them after dinner. Is that alright?" Not noticing how tense the blond's body language became after stating that fact, the tall green-eyed man took in the nod he received in return respectably and opened his menu, diverting his attention to the mountain of junk food now ready for his perusal.

Cloud, on the other hand, could only concentrate on the multitude of questions and statements building within his head as he mechanically picked up the laminated menu and emptily stared down at the pictures in front of him.

"Have you decid-"

"What can I get for you?" Sephiroth nearly growled as he snapped his head in the waiter's direction, green eyes glowing with anger.

Stormy blue orbs narrowed dangerously as long chocolate-brown bangs shifted slightly, the waiter's crisp white shirt bleached to near perfection whilst he glared a hole in Sephiroth's forehead.

"Cloud?" Forcing his glare/stare away from the snotty little shit disguised as a server Sephiroth quirked his eyebrow up in question, sighing in silent relief as the boy nodded and quickly asked for a grilled chicken sandwich and lemonade; the smile he shared with the waiter did not slip past Sephiroth's ever diligent attention.

Smoothly ordering his own food, Sephiroth felt the student sitting across from him tense up in discomfort as the two men now forced to interact with each other eye-strangled the other with equal glares of distaste.

"Thanks Leon." Cloud timidly offered the now-smiling waiter a gracious beam, trying to ward off the rays of anger he could practically _feel _radiating off of his… _date_.

Was it possible to feel both incredibly blissful yet impossibly distressed all at once?

Because Cloud was feeling it and he was feeling it all _badly_.

"He seems to be quite taken with you." Sephiroth deadpanned, eyes shining like deadly lasers.

"We have a little bit in common is all." Feeling the heavy brunt of his companion's intense glare, Cloud shrank into his seat to minimize the fierceness of Sephiroth's sudden irritation. "Leon's really protective of those he cares about. And no offense but… you don't have the _greatest _of track records with people, Sephiroth."

"Those _rumors _are completel-"

"I'm not saying I believe them," Cloud interrupted, "I'm just saying that not everybody else thinks the same way as I do. They don't know you like Zack, Aerith and I know you, Sephiroth, and I hate to say it, but can you really blame them with how persistent some of those people _are_?"

"I suppose so." Sephiroth reluctantly admitted. "If you are just coming to Midgar and don't know anything about me, I can see your point of view…"

Blushing a bit at the insinuation Cloud bit his lip as he thought of the first rumor he had ever heard about Sephiroth and how angry Zack and Aerith had been once he had quietly asked them about it.

"Yeah, but if you're smart and have connections, you know better than to just rely on what people say too. I bet if you opened yourself up a bit more…"

"Wouldn't that be the pot calling the kettle black, Cloud?"

"That's-that's different!" Face flushed red the usually quiet blond heard his voice go up an octave, the smug grin on his companion's own visage irking him even further. "I'm not…"

Blinking suddenly, Cloud felt his body immediately calm down as he whispered out the words that he had been hiding from since the first time he had met the silver-haired gorgeous man. "I'm not like you."

"Why… why are you doing this, Sephiroth?" Light stroking the table's surface with his index finger, Cloud coyly lowered his eyes and traced with the swirls of different colored blues littering the slab of marble in front of him. "You've never shown any interest in me before. Why _now_? It just… doesn't make sense."

"I ho-"

"Here you go." Sephiroth bit his tongue as Leon appeared out of nowhere, setting down the drinks with a tiny smirk in Sephiroth's direction. "Your food should be done soon."

"Thank you, Leon." Cloud answered for the both of them before the college student could form one of his signature sarcastic remarks. Leon's smirk softened into a slight smile as he nodded and went on to the next table. "You were saying?"

"As I was saying before I was interrupted by our… waiter," reclining back against the booth seat, cascades of silver hair fell over sturdy shoulders in a whirlwind of light strands, causing Cloud's attention to migrate from the words actually coming out of Sephiroth's mouth and the beautiful image the man had unknowingly painted as he lazed about in his seat "I hold an attraction towards you, Cloud, and I was advised by Zack that in order to gain your attention I would need to befriend you first before I could court you. I am simply going through the proper procedure."

"But that doesn't explain why-Ok, what I want to ask is how you suddenly developed this attraction to me. It just doesn't make sense! Before, you never even said a word to me and now, it's like you're everywhere I go!"

'That would be because I **am** everywhere you go.'

But Sephiroth wisely kept that thought to himself.

"Is it so difficult to accept that perhaps I have always held some semblance of attraction towards you and was simply too shy to act on it?"

Cloud nearly spit out the drink he had been absently sipping on as he abruptly laughed in Sephiroth's face.

They both knew _that _was a loud of bull-crap in the making.

"And the _real _reason would be…?" The boy uncharacteristically snapped, eyes sharpening under the diner's artificial light.

'Think of a lie, think of a lie, think of a lie, DAMN IT, THINK OF A BETTER LIE ALREADY!'

"I…"

"Here you go." Sephiroth nearly sighed in relief as Leon dropped his plate in front of him, his brusque manner pushing in at just the right time. "Need anything else?"

"We're fine." Cloud did sigh as he picked his fork and stabbed a couple of his french-fries.

Leon gave the boy one last probing stare before walking away with a swagger, not even pitching Sephiroth one last glare for his efforts.

"Cloud…?" The green-eyed student tilted his head to the side and quirked up a brow, smiling slightly at the boy's puffed cheeks filled with food and innocent inquire now resting over his gaze. "I like you. Is that not enough?"

A tiny burn settled over the blond's nose and cheeks as he swallowed his food. "I don't mind being your friend, Sephiroth; in fact, I always considered us friends even before all this weird stuff started happening, but I think it's better that we just _stay _friends. Ok?"

"You will not even give me a chance, Cloud?" Leaning forward, Sephiroth let the tiny smile on his face unfurl even further. "We both know that once I set my sights on something I will not give up until it is in my possession."

"But… I'm _not_ a possession. I'm your _friend_." Pouting, Cloud crossed his arms over his chest, the food in front of him already half-eaten. "I won't let you treat me like some sort of _thing _Sephiroth and I won't settle myself to be used at your convenience."

"I am asking you to be my partner; I believe that is the farthest from a possession that one could be." Liking this new spit-fire attitude awakening within his companion Sephiroth inwardly smirked. "Don't you like me too, Cloud?"

"That's a loaded question and you know it." Sagging within his seat a small glare accompanied the adorable pout hanging from Cloud's lips. "And it has nothing to do with what we're talking about."

"Hm… not really. If you do indeed like me then all I ask is that you accept me as I am. If you do not then-"

The pout became all the more prominent nearly eclipsing Sephiroth with the cuteness of it despite how oblivious Cloud seemed to be about his own expression. "Then you'll just bug me until I say otherwise, right?"

"… … You know me so well, Cloud. Zackary and Aerith must be very good teachers."

"You've never shown any interest in anyone before. I just don't get it…" Cloud picked up a lone french-fry off of his plate and tore it apart with his fingers, teeth gnawing at his lower lip. "What's so special about me?"

"Get to know me better and you will see." Sephiroth dropped off mysteriously before pushing his plate forward and glancing over his shoulder to see Leon glaring at him with his arms crossed. "Check please!"

* * *

Cloud picked at his hoodie's zipper as he sat within the huge SUV, Sephiroth quietly driving with a relaxed look on his face.

"I want to give you a chance…" The tiny boy admitted, his voice small and fragile. "Is it ok if we take this slow?"

"Of course, Cloud." Sephiroth could already see a mini-Zack doing a jig within his mind, scoffing at the semi-amusing display. "I would never do anything you would feel uncomfortable with."

'_Except stalk you. And read your journal. And prey on your insecurities. And stalk you some more. And-_'

'Shut up Not-Zack.'

Smiling up at the older man, Cloud just about grinned as they parked in front of the arcade Aerith had been talking about. Two lone figures hung by the entrance, Cloud waving as he recognized them almost immediately.

"Aerith! Zack!" Practically jumping off the seat (_and *not* nearly breaking his neck in the process this time_) Cloud dashed towards his big sister and best friend, Sephiroth trailing right behind him.

"Well there's a foreign concept…" Zack muttered as he nodded towards Sephiroth, the only one to actually get the joke if the way he was glaring at the dark-haired student was any indication.

"FINALLY!" Aerith giggled as she grabbed Cloud's hand, pulling him inside. "Let's go, Cloud!"

"But-"

"C'mon, Seph, let's let the girls have their time together!" Zack guffawed before Cloud emitted a loud "ZACK YOU BASTARD!" and Sephiroth, who often liked to take the simplistic approach, violently smacked him behind the head. "Damn Seph don't take it so damn personal! I know better to make fun of your girl-"

Sephiroth, Cloud AND Aerith gave him varying sets of the same kind of baleful glare that Zack knew meant NOTHING but trouble if he were to finish that sentence.

"I mean, sorry Cloud." The raven-haired 18-year-old whimpered, head sagging forward a bit as those same glares turned into grins.

Rolling his eyes Cloud grabbed onto his sister and began to make his way towards the change machines. "I'll get some change with Aerith; Sephiroth, do you mind watching after Zack?"

Flailing his arms around, Zack exclaimed rather loudly "What am I, a dog?!"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"… Why am I friends with you guys again?"

"C'mon Cloud…" Aerith didn't even give her boyfriend another glance as she pulled out her money. "It's not even worth it…"

* * *

"So how did it go?!" Sephiroth nearly backed away from his friend as the crazed grin stretched out on his face became accompanied by a rather unsettling gleam within those violet-amethyst orbs. "Did you put 'the moves' on the kid? Mack on him? Make it through dinner? Tell meeee…"

"Zack, your ADHD is showing." Sephiroth deadpanned. "Calm yourself please."

"Fine…" Taking in a breath Zack took a step back and ran a hand through his darkened locks. "Ok. How was dinner?"

"Nearly disastrous. I almost told him about… well, you know."

"Damn. Well, the kid is sharp; he's probably gonna figure you all out sooner or later…"

"I know. But… is it disappointing on my part if I prefer 'later'?"

"Nah, but I know Cloud; he'll get it, Seph. Just tell him what you told me and I'm sure he'll understand. I mean, how badly could he react? It's freaking _Cloud_!"

As Zack said this, however, the older man began thinking back on Cloud's sudden fit of agitated discomfort within the diner and winced.

"Orrrrr I could be wrong…" Zack muttered as he noticed Sephiroth's sudden grimace and re-thought his game plan within his head. "But… this is real for you, isn't it Seph?"

Before Sephiroth could answer the same blond they had been talking about appeared through the throng of people now surrounding them, a large smile pulling against his cheeks.

"Got it!"

Aerith giggled as she handed Zack some change and Cloud did the same with his own (_and he hesitated to say this even within his own head_) date. "What do you guys wanna play fir-"

"Firsties!" Zack shouted out before cackling out into the crowd, Sephiroth practically chasing after him in a fit of competition.

Cloud laughed as he watched both Zack and Sephiroth rush towards a rather ancient looking machine and attempt to beat the other at the fighting game they stationed themselves in front of, blue eyes glowing with feverish delight. Aerith then tugged on his arm, pointing at the DDR machine that a few teenagers were crowded around.

"C'mon, Cloud! It's time to show me your moves!"

"But-but I have no moves!"

"NONSENSE! Let's go shake that pretty little tush of yours and make everyone _jealous_!"

"But Aerrrriiiittthhh!"

"No buts; it's time to dance!"

Cloud sweat-dropped as he was dragged to his DDR-doom, blue eyes wide with worry as he thought of his impending clumsiness.

His knee-caps throbbed at the thought.

* * *

After an hour of nearly falling on his face (_again_) and another hour of trying to pry Sephiroth and Zack away from the amazing machines called video-games, Cloud felt as if he were ready to fall asleep with his eyes open.

"Did you have a good time?" Sephiroth's quiet timbre awakened the boy just enough to get a response, a lazy smile tickling the corners of his lips as he slowly gazed over at the mass of silver obscuring Sephiroth's face.

"That was… a lot more fun than I expected it to be." Cloud quietly admitted, giving into temptation and playing with the zipper of his hoodie as he stared down at his feet.

"Would that mean that you would not be too opposed to doing it again?" Sephiroth smiled as Cloud's eyes widened and he slowly nodded, taking on the appearance of a bobble-head doll.

"I-I wouldn't mind. That is, if you wanted to do something, I wouldn't mind doing something with you." _Lame_, Cloud thought to himself. _That was so lame._

"Are you free on Friday?"

"Su-Oh, no. Argh…" Cloud leaned forward before letting his head fall back on the cushion of the car seat. "Yuffie invited me to some party of hers. I tried to get out of it but she's pretty persistent when she wants to be."

"Yuffie… I recognize that name…"

"Her dad is head of Shinra's rival company; you know, that place that manufactures and helps import all Wutain goods? From what I've heard they're crazy people, and if you've met Yuffie… let's just say that I can believe it."

"Hm…"

"I would ask you to go, but I know you hate those things…" Cloud let his head fall to the side as Sephiroth turned a corner and began to slow down, his house only a couple meters away. "We can do something on Saturday if you want."

"I've got all-day practice on Saturday. How about Sunday instead?"

Cloud laughed as Sephiroth smirked, the lilting sound within the boy's tenor relaxing in its own right.

'No wonder Zack likes to make Aerith laugh if this feeling is the end result, even if it is indirect…'

"Sunday's fine." Cloud shoved his hands into his pockets as Sephiroth parked and both men got out of the SUV and made their way to the door… _slowly_. "You… have my number right?"

"Mm-hm." Nodding, the older man silently cursed as they made it to the entrance of the blond's home. "But don't worry; I'll be picking you up tomorrow from school. Same time, same place."

Cloud blushed as he smiled and lowered his head; one hand now on the doorknob as the other reached into his pocket and pulled out his keys. "Ok…"

"I guess I'll see you to-Oomph!"

Just as Cloud turned his head to say goodbye to his (_why was it so difficult to say to himself; he wasn't even admitting it out loud!_) date, Sephiroth caught his chin with his thumb and forefinger and held it, face moving forward even as Cloud stood stock-still.

'_Oh my God, oh my God, oh my God, oh my God-_'

A pair of warm slightly chapped lips met his own in a brief, if not completely mind-blowing, kiss. Cloud, not quite able to process the fact that his first kiss had been stolen by the most popular man in Midgar, let his mouth fall open in a rather unattractive gape as Sephiroth then reached forward and kissed his cheek as well.

"I believe that seals the deal, right Cloud?"

Knowing the boy wouldn't be able to speak even if he was being begged to, Sephiroth pushed the now-unlocked door open and gently shoved the teenager inside, trying to hide his smile of amusement behind a well-placed hand. "I believe this is goodnight."

Cloud followed the man's long silver hair as he spun around and made his way back into his SUV, leather duster swishing gently around his long masculine legs. Finally closing his mouth, the blond held in a yelp of excitement as he closed the door and leaned against the sturdy plank of wood.

Sliding down onto the floor, pale fingers traced the burning lips left in the older man's wake. Letting his head fall back against the wooden door still supporting him, the tiny blond raised his legs to his chest and clutched onto his knees.

After a night of never-ending surprises, Cloud could only ask himself one thing.

'_Does this mean he's my boyfriend now?!_'

* * *

"Almost done!"

Gast Faremis smiled victoriously as he stared at the various test tubes in front of him, hands on his hips in a rather relaxed stance. "I can't believe it, really…"

"Don't get too comfortable," Hojo muttered as he jotted down some notes, carefully taking note of the rats settled within the various cages surrounding the laboratory. "There's still much to be done."

"I'm just excited to be getting home; Cloud and Aerith have been complaining that they never get to see me anymore." Gast jokingly stated as he scratched the back of his neck, glasses slipping down the bridge of his nose. "You know, I'm just glad the kids are all getting along so well. Zack and Aerith went out on another date; they're still going strong you know!"

"That's nice," Hojo stated disinterestedly.

Scribbling down his own observations, Gast chuckled as he picked up a beaker with his free hand and began a set of new preparations for his experimentation. "Not only that…"

"It was awfully nice of Sephiroth to invite Cloud on one as well." Gast cheerfully spoke, measuring the number of milligrams that was in the liquid with a steady eye.

Hojo, on the other hand, nearly dropped the beaker he had been holding as soon as Gast spoke.

"… … You said he did _what_?!"

Gast blinked as the slightly younger scientist stared at him with wide eyes, feeling as if he had just stuck his foot in his mouth.

"Uh… Zack and Aerith are still going strong?"

Dark eyes narrowed as another beaker full of liquid behind the livid scientist tilted over and fell onto the floor with a bang, a small explosion darkening the spot on the ground it fell upon. Gast laughed uncomfortably as the rats surrounding them began to hiss as a result.

'_Well, shit._'


	7. Chapter Seven

A/N: Hi, everybody! Here's the next chapter… finally. ^.^ Yeah. I don't know why but this chapter was really tough for me to write… I think the fact that I'm hinting at so much at once is really eating at my brain! Lol. Next chapter we finally get some answers and I finally get to stop hinting at crap. *Le sigh* Did I mention finally? XD

Btw, I haven't gotten anyone who opposes to Leon's arrival, so I suppose we'll add him to the bunch. Just fyi though I appreciate CxLxC just as much as SxC (in fact I support all variations of thus; yes, I totally think CxLxS is hot! Woo!) so… this may change things a bit. Luckily this plot isn't dead solid so I like the way things may be going… :-D Hopefully this doesn't turn off any readers. Hahahaha.

Disclaimer: I don't own the Final Fantasy series nor do I own the song "Somebody's Watching Me". This should effing be obvious, my friend. In fact, why are you even _reading_ this? O.o;

* * *

"_When I come home at night_

_I bolt the door real tight-_

_People call me on the phone_

_I'm trying to avoid; _

_But can the people on TV see me?_

_Can they?!_

_Or am I just paranoid...?_

_When I am in the shower_

_I'm afraid to wash my hair _

_'Cause I might open my eyes _

_And find someone standing there._

_People say I'm crazy; _

_Just a little touched_

_But showers remind of "Psycho" too much!_

_I always feel like somebody's watching me_

_And I have no privacy!_

_I always feel like somebody's watching me..._

_Tell me,_

_Is it just a dream?_"

-"Somebody's Watching Me" Originally performed by Rockwell ft. Michael Jackson, Covered by The Cover Corp.

* * *

Title: _**When You Walk Away**_

Chapter Seven: _Somebody's Watching Me_

* * *

"You gonna check in on Cloud, Aer?" Zack scratched the back of his head as his girlfriend fiddled with the doorknob in front of her, violet eyes screwed up in worry. "I, uh, don't know what Seph might've said to him when he dropped him off, so…"

"Zack, don't you trust Sephiroth?" Aerith quietly asked, turning over her shoulder so as to gauge her boyfriend's response. "If you didn't trust him, why did you even give him the go ahead to pursue Cloud?"

"That's not it, babe!" Flailing his arms, the dark-haired student worked to save himself from single-dom. "I trust Sephy-poo's intentions! I just… don't trust his mouth?"

"… … He's not that bad, Zack. I mean really, isn't he your best friend?!"

"Of course he's my best friend! But you only think that way because you haven't heard his pick-up lines yet…" Zack murmured under his breath, thinking back to the day _after _Sephiroth's 'epiphany' (so to speak) and what Zack liked to call 'the day Sephiroth actually revealed he had an actual libido in those tight-ass pants'.

* * *

"_Sephiroth, listen; if you want to really impress the boy, you have to present your affections in an orderly way. Pick-up lines are essential in making sure that a woman (or in this case, womanly-man) knows that we are interested in dating/boning them in the near (hopefully __**very **__near) future." _

"_Boning…?"_

"… … _Please don't tell me you have been hanging around me for this long and honestly don't know what the hell that means?" _

"…"

_Zack sighed as he ran a hand through his spiky dark locks, ignoring the sudden urge to go back into the kitchen and make himself a sandwich in pure defeat. _

"_You know what? Just pretend I'm Cloud and do what I just told you." _

"_Present my… want for his company?" _

"_YES." _

"_Well… alright." _

"_Finally…" The younger of the two nearly beamed as Sephiroth leaned forward and cleared his throat, sharp green eyes narrowing slightly with a look of determination lingering over his visage to accompany them. _

"_No one in Midgar could possibly measure up to my strength and prowess; be with me Cloud and I shall ensure that these same attributes shall never be used against you by anyone." _

"_Eh, heh, heh… Seph, that's a, uh, good attempt, but I don't think that one's _quite _right. Why don't you try again, ok?" _

"… _Fine." Tilting his head to the side, Zack almost laughed as he practically watched the cogs in Sephiroth's head turn. "Because I have found myself becoming severely attracted to your presence as of late, I think it would be in both of our best interests if we copulated with each other and formed a contract which would ensure both of our needs would be satisfied, exclusively with one another. Saying no in this situation, of course, is not an option." _

_Zack blinked, wondering if Sephiroth was joking with him. _

_Best not tempt fate and ride along the safer route…_

"_Sephy-dear, that's… not quite what I meant by pick-up lines either…" _

"_Or this; Cloud, I like you. Now relinquish yourself to me or you shall face the painful, torturous consequences." _

"_Uh, Seph-"_

"_No? How about this; Cloud, if you do not go out with me, I will terrorize your family and send my legion of fangirls after you until you are nothing but a bloody composition of dismembered limbs and broken dreams."_

"_Ok, now you're just straight out threatening the poor bo-"_

"_I have never met anyone like you in my life… be mine or I shall destroy everyone who attempts to claim you for their own and take you by force." _

"_Seph!" _

"_What?" _

"_Those are not pick-up lines! You're just trying to intimidate the poor kid into going out with you instead of wooing him like I told you to!" _

"… … _And?" _

"_DO YOU NOT SEE ANYTHING WRONG WITH THAT?!" _

"_If it ensures me his company I do not see the difference between your way and my way." _

"_You're using fear instead of love to get him to be with you; do you want him to actually like you back or do you just want him to tag along after you like some kind of mindless puppet?!" _

"… _Can we explore the puppet option and what that would entail?" _

"_Oh my God, LET'S JUST GET BACK TO SQUARE ONE, OK?!" _

_Sephiroth nonchalantly shrugged as he leaned back against the couch, Zack's red face more than just a little mortified. _

"_Now, the art of romance; lesson one, revisited." _

* * *

Zack almost smacked himself in the face as he bit his bottom lip and shakily smiled at his confused girlfriend, already planning on whipping out his cell-phone and making sure his best friend hadn't done anything _too_ damaging to his almost-little brother.

"Yeah… I'm sure Cloud's just fine." Was what Zack decided to say just before he kissed Aerith on the cheek before her body disappeared behind the door, her lips tilted up into a small sweet smile that would melt even the iciest of hearts. "Just… fine…"

Practically jumping off the porch in front of him, Zack rushed inside his car and pulled his cell-phone out of his pocket along with his car keys.

Better safe than sorry, after all…

* * *

"Cloud?"

The thought-hazy blond leaning against the kitchen table blinked as curious green eyes met emphatically-confused blue. Nursing the cup of hot chocolate he held between his hands carefully against his chest, Cloud nodded at his older sister as she hesitantly entered the room and tiredly smiled.

"So… are you alright?" Aerith quietly asked him as he took a sip of the warm liquid cupped against his palms and let his mind trail back to the reality around him not self-deluded by his morose thoughts.

"I…" How did he answer that question without sounding like a complete moron again? "Yeah?"

Aerith gave the boy a skeptical look as she pried the cup from his slap-happy hands and pushed him into a chair, knowing her little brother had once again fallen into his world of self-inflicted depression. "Cloudy, what's the matter?"

"Nothing!" The pretty blond squeaked out. "Nothing at all! It's… uh… nothing?"

Green eyes rolled as the placidity within the brunette's expression did nothing to make the poor boy feel better about his current situation.

"Cloud…"

"Huh?"

"You can snap out of it at any time, you know." Aerith replied as kindly as could be, green eyes glittering with amusement.

Rubbing the back of his neck with a sense of embarrassment only Cloud could make seem absolutely adorable, the younger teenager slowly shrugged, finally breaking out of his mask of quiet shame as the woman before him giggled at his poor attempt to hide his own ridiculous sense of self-pity. "Sorry. I just blanked out for a second… or a thousand."

"I noticed." Patting the blond on his head, Aerith lowered herself to his level. "He must have really done a number to have you so into your own world, Cloudy. Now, won't you feel better if you just tell me what it is that Sephiroth did to have marked you so darn bad?"

The blush on Cloud's face deepened even further as he thought back on the end of the night and just how confused Midgar's hero had managed to make him with one small gesture. Carefully wringing his hands together, Cloud lowered his head as Aerith moved even closer to his person.

"He… well, he…"

"It's ok, Cloud. You know you can tell me!"

"Um… uh… he, uh…"

"Cloud, just spit it out!"

"HE KISSED ME." Slapping his hands over his mouth, a rapid blush set itself over Cloud's cheeks as Aerith's jaw dropped and her eyes widened inexplicably. Both brother and sister stayed poised in their positions for nearly a minute of doing nothing but breathe as they stared at each other in speechless shock.

"He… _kissed _you? _Already_?!" Aerith was the first one to break out of the astonished silence, the smile from earlier stretching across her face once again; this time, increasing its mirth by ten-fold. "He sure works _fast_ doesn't he?"

"You're not funny Aeri!" Cloud blurted out. "I… I don't know what to do, how to act around him now, what to say to him the next time I talk to him… he's made everything so confusing so fast. How am I supposed to keep with him like this?"

"You know… I'm not really surprised. He has always treated you differently you know."

"_What_?"

"Well, Cloud, I know you're not the most observant of the bunch, but you know he's never really taken to other people like he's taken to you. Not even Zack. Maybe this isn't all happening as fast as you think it is; maybe you're just finally getting the memo." Aerith slowly stood up, enjoying the ruminating expression set over her younger brother's face as he finally nit-picked at everything he knew. "Besides, he might come off as kind of cold but I don't think he would ever do anything cruel like play with your emotions or _lie _to you-"

"Play with my emotions? Lie?" Suddenly a dark raincloud appeared over Cloud's head as he whipped his head up and stared up at the young woman now inadvertently wishing she had bitten her tongue. "What do you mean lie? He might be _lying_ to me _and _playing with my emotions? What the hell, Aerith?!"

"Uh…" Aerith literally had nothing this time. "Keep up your faith and hope for the best?"

Cloud gulped as he slumped within his chair.

This… was not how he had expected his conversation with his big sister to end.

'_I really do have the worst luck ever…_'

* * *

"… … _Zackary?_"

Zack said nothing as the phone fell from his hand and dropped onto the car floor, his small sedan parked in front of the apartment complex he shared with his supposed-guardians. The echo of Sephiroth's voice did little to actually comfort him as he banged his head against the steering-wheel, wondering where exactly he went _wrong _with the older man.

After a minute of complete mind-numbing (_and for some odd reason, highly relieving_) head-bashing, Zack picked up the phone, rubbing against the bright pink spot now settled against his forehead as he took a deep breath and let it out in a smooth breeze from his lips.

"Please tell me you didn't actually do that, Sephiroth."

"_Did I break one of your ridiculous rules again, Zack?_"

"Ridi-ridiculous?! Seph, you just _mind-fucked_ the _shit _out of the poor kid! Don't you feel any sort of _compassion _for him at this point?!"

"_Well, shouldn't he get used to it now as opposed to later?_"

"…"

"…"

"… You have serious issues, bestest-best-friend-forever."

"_If you are just figuring this out now, Zack, I feel there is just no hope for us as friends._"

"Ha mother-fucking _ha_." Zack once again wondered just why he put up with the gargantuan bag of hot-mess that was Sephiroth on a daily basis. "I'm just saying, this kid barely knows anything about you except for what he's heard from Aerith and me. You can't go dropping bombs on the kid and then walking away like you would if he was one of your stupid fan-girls, expecting him to be a-ok with the fact. He's probably shitting in his pants trying to figure out the why's and the how's-Seph, this kid isn't just a walk in the park type of guy, he's just as much of a head case as you are!"

"_I suppose that just simply makes us compatible._"

"DID YOU HEAR ANYTHING I JUST SAID?!"

"… … _I heard it. That doesn't mean I was listening to it._"

"You are… oh my God, why am I helping you again?"

"_Because poor Cloud would probably be lost without it._"

"You mean even _more _lost."

"_Indeed._"

"God, if you are as half as twisted mentally as Cloud is physically, you are _both _screwed." Zack nearly guffawed out loud at the thought, even as he felt slightly sick at the tasteless joke. Cloud's own scars (physical scars) were a touchy subject and he knew Sephiroth knew almost nothing about them. But the older silver-haired man was just as messed up; even with that remark, Zack knew his best friend's brain was churning, trying to make sense of the riddle that was Cloud Strife.

"_About that… I believe it would be in Cloud's best interest to let you know that you were right for once. Cloud does in fact seem to be a bully magnet._"

Clenching the phone between angry fingers, Zack almost snapped as his renewed suspicions were verified. "I knew those bruises on his cheek the other day wasn't just a work of klutziness in the making! That kid can't lie worth _shit_!"

"_Well, something must be done about this, and immediately._"

Shifting within the driver's seat of his car, Zack grinned as an idea quickly formulated within his head. "You do realize that you can totally spin this to your advantage, don't you?"

"_What?_"

"You know, set yourself up as the hero! Come in, save the day, do all that heroic bullshit all those fan-girls are always spewing at you! I bet Cloud'll be falling all over you at the first sign of distress!"

"_I… don't think Cloud works that way, Zackary_."

"Ok, who knows the kid better, you or me?"

"… … _you._"

"Then do as you're told for once and buck up! You've already scared the shit out of him, confused him and toyed with his emotions all without realizing it, do something _positive _for him for once and stop second-guessing my awesome advice!" Zack grinned as he listened to the older man sigh on the other line, his exasperation pouring over in waves.

"_If you say so, Zack._"

"Good job! Now get yourself some sleep; you sound like crap." Before the older man could snap out a rude remark in his direction, Zack snapped his phone shut and chuckled.

He'd be getting both of his friends both content and laidin _no time_.

'_And Genesis said it couldn't be done… RUBBISH I SAY; RUBBISH!_'

* * *

Cloud yawned as he finally settled within his sheets, drooping eyes emphasized by the dark semi-circles painted underneath them. After Aerith had tried to dissuade his pessimistic thoughts (_yet again_) and failed miserably (_yet a-double-gain_), Cloud had jumped into the bathroom connected to his room and holed himself inside for nearly two hours, thinking and re-thinking and pruning away at his mountain of problems that had seemed to developed over night.

After thinking back on his sister's insightful observations regarding Sephiroth's own intentions, Cloud had found himself noticing little things that had made the man's… attraction apparent. At least, to Sephiroth's standards they would be. Little things that would hardly be noticeable to others were cherished by the older man with glowing green eyes and long shiny hair; tiny conversations about one's health, always sitting close by if not next to him, ignoring others in favor of listening in what Cloud had always had to say, even if it wasn't very much…

Was that what Aerith meant, Cloud had timidly wondered while laying within the bathtub, body slowly wrinkling as the cooling water gently splashed against his skin.

It must've been…

But how was he supposed to know?

Hell, how was he supposed to _take it_?

Sephiroth had _never _shown anyone else any kind of interest. If Cloud reciprocated, even a little, he would probably be mauled alive by the man's fan-girls. If he didn't, he'd probably be mauled alive by _Sephiroth_.

And his fan-girls.

There were at Sephiroth's beck and call, after all…

This was clearly a lose-lose situation in Cloud's book.

'_Or is it…_'

Sighing heavily, Cloud cleared those kinds of thoughts from his head, smashing the pillow next to him against his chest. He knew that he was dangerously attracted to Sephiroth as well. He just had never expected that attraction to be reciprocated; unrequited love was alright because there was no chance of ever having to hope for something more. It was one-sided; the type of pain he could hold close to his chest and learn to live with, even if gradually.

The possibility that lay open to him now, however, was _frightening_. Most people would see it as a chance to be happy.

Cloud saw it as another chance to lose everything he held dear.

Loneliness, he knew, had to be better than _this…_

Cloud was suddenly startled out of his thoughts as his cell-phone, which had been charging beside him on his night-table, began to ring incessantly. Quickly picking it up, Cloud snapped it open and huffed out a greeting without even checking who it could have been.

"H-hello?"

"_Cloud? Hello._"

Jaw dropping at the impeccable timing, Cloud carefully lay back on his bed.

This was just too much at this point.

"Se-Sephiroth? Are you ok? What's up?"

"_I apologize for calling at such an hour but I felt that our time together was insufficient. I only ask for a small space in time in which to speak to you once more before we both slumber._"

"Uh… wah?"

"_I simply wished to tell you goodnight._"

"…"

"…"

"Um… thank… you?"

"_That is not necessary; it was for my own convenience that I called after all. Nonetheless, I shall see you tomorrow morning Cloud. Pleasant dreams._"

Cloud blinked sleepily as the phone on the other line clicked before a dial tone bounced against his eardrum, clearly missing the last words spoken as his drowsy subconscious gently blurred them out. The neat little conundrum that had bounced within his sleepy mind quickly exploded into a full-fledged mystery now nestled deeply within the back of his thoughts.

All the answers he wished to have, however, were tucked inside the one man whom seemed to refuse to give them.

Hopefully, Cloud thought to himself as he fully tucked himself into the cozy covers and closed his eyes one final time for the night, tomorrow would bring a better ending than today did.

* * *

For some reason, Cloud had awoken with a bad feeling curbing within the depths of stomach, quietly churning over as the boy rubbed at his midsection in silent worry. He didn't know what it was or why it was there, but it was, and it was driving him mad.

Brushing his teeth, combing his permanent-bed-head hair, putting on his uniform-

It was all done with a heavy pit within his lower torso, a burning taste of dissatisfaction lingering on the tip of his tongue, refusing to wash away along with the toothpaste that had scrubbed his mouth clean of any residue.

Making his way down the stairs, the pit became heavier and heavier, and once he made it to the kitchen, where Aerith greeted him as cheerfully as always, he finally knew why.

"Good morning Cloud!" Aerith pleasantly chirped in front of the stove, waving at the younger man stuck stock-still in front of her.

However, Aerith was _not _the reason Cloud had been so displeasingly dropped out of his semi-dreamy state. In fact, it was safe to say that Cloud had not even noticed the chirpy brunette pacing about the kitchen in a fashion only a mother would be proud of.

"Good morning Cloud." Sephiroth called out from his spot within the kitchen, Zack grinning wildly beside him whilst waving at the still-exhausted blond. "How did you sleep last night?"

Perhaps it was the sudden shock of seeing the two men in his home during a time when usually it was only Cloud himself and Aerith, or maybe it was the continual dose of Sephiroth who had refused to leave him in peace for days at a time, but the question that popped out of his mouth nearly chocked both Zack and Aerith into an early grave thanks to the laughter that got stuck bubbling within their throats.

"What are _you_ doing here?!"

"… … I told you yesterday when I called you that you would be seeing me tomorrow morning. Do you not remember Cloud?"

At the blank stare directed at his face, Sephiroth would have to hazard at guessing that no, he did not remember at all. Though in Cloud's defense he had sounded as if he had dropped off before Sephiroth had even called him, so perhaps the boy's memory could not be blamed entirely in this situation.

"Regardless of the fact I am here to see you off to school. And no, it is no problem for me; I do not have class until the mid-afternoon." Turning to his best friend (_who looked like the cat who ate the proverbial canary_) Sephiroth gave the dark-haired soldier in training a threatening glare. "You shall be staying here and keeping Aerith company, correct Zack?"

"Why not?" Zack shrugged. "I love spending time with my sugar-pie."

Zack ignored the simultaneous gag heaved within the room as he sent his girlfriend a large air-kiss. Aerith giggled in response.

"Uh… I… uh… gottagobye!" Rushing out of the room as if the hounds of hell were licking at his heels, Cloud rushed out the door as he grabbed his book-bag, which had been laid next to said entrance. Instead of staying where he was and wondering just what had come over the blond schoolboy like Aerith and Zack, Sephiroth quickly took off after the 16-year-old, his blood thrilling at the sudden chase.

Zack snorted as he laughed, the only things left in both Cloud and Sephiroth's wake being an up-turned chair, a blaze of syrup and a wide-open door now swinging happily against the cooling breeze. "You think those two will _ever _get it?"

Aerith sighed as she grabbed the mop beside her and shook her head.

"What do _you _think?"

* * *

"Cloud!"

"STOP FOLLOWING ME!"

"No!"

"Why not?!"

"Because I do not want to!"

Cloud grunted as he finally skidded to a halt, his breath coming out in large pants as the 21-year-old man behind him nearly hit his back as a result. Spinning around and tilting his head up so that he could get a clear view of his 'stalker', Cloud nearly stomped his feet in frustration. "Why are you _doing _this?!"

Sephiroth let out a loose breath, not having even broken a sweat much to Cloud's increasing rancor. "I told you, Cloud. I feel an attraction towards you-"

"You could have anyone that you want. Anyone! Even the people who would deny you at first; they would all eventually break. Why do you need me? I am and have always been _nothing _and that won't ever change." Having never heard the young boy speak of himself in such a way, Sephiroth almost lost his footing as Cloud turned around and sprinted off to school, leaving the silver-haired man to stew in his own thoughts and just how much they actually compared to the blond's own way of thinking when it came to himself.

* * *

'What the… hell…'

Cloud kept grimaced as he continually glanced over his shoulder, the large crowd surrounding him much more suffocating than usual. After a morning filled with drama, self-loathing and robotic teachers who did nothing more but stare at you and expected you to read their minds, Cloud had just about had enough. But if all that wasn't enough, the turbid sensation of being followed continued to haunt the boy even as he knew that Sephiroth was, for once, not the cause of such pestering.

Carefully weaving himself through the crowd, Cloud hung his head and made his way to his locker. Not noticing the pale hand that hovered over his shoulder, the small blond almost jumped through his skin as the appendage gripped onto his shoulder.

"Yuffie!" Cloud cried out as the small girl nearly cackled into the hallway. "That wasn't funny."

"Ah, Sorry Cloudy! You were just so in the zone… I couldn't resist." Shrugging in a menial sort of way, the young girl rounded her large brown eyes and stared up at the boy (_who really was a softie at heart_) with a smile even the devil couldn't say no to. "Just checking up to make sure you haven't forgotten about tomorrooowww…"

"I haven't, and yes, I'm still going before you decide to heckle me. I don't know _why _you need me to go, but I won't let you down." Opening his locker with a shaky hand, Cloud attempted to ignore the feeling of being sized up; Yuffie didn't seem to notice, but the moment she had tapped his shoulder the feeling of being watched had increased tremendously and it only served to make Cloud feel all the more nervous. "Just… please don't try to make this more difficult than it needs to be, Yuf."

"I have no idea what you're talking about, Cloud." Yuffie seemed to shine as she shrugged, giving a small little wave before flouncing off to her next class. Cloud fidgeted silently as he glanced over his shoulder once again. The eyes of the crowd surrounding him didn't even flinch as he tepidly disappeared into the mass of students once more.

* * *

Sephiroth sighed as he ran a hand through his long silver locks, for once feeling nothing but frustration clinging to his psyche. After a morning of headaches and dulled-down fits of anger, he conceded that to himself that _perhaps _Zack knew what he was talking about when he had been stating that it would be best to _slow the hell down_.

'What would Zackary say in this type of situation…'

"_GOD DAMN IT SEPH, LOOK AT WHAT YOU DID?! CAN'T YOU JUST MAN THE HELL UP AND GIVE THE KID A BREAK?!" _

'On second thought, let's not think about that.' Sephiroth almost sweat-dropped as toyed with a single strand of silver hair, green eyes blurred with disenchantment. 'Perhaps Zack's idea about playing the hero really _would _work to my advantage…?'

Before his train of thought could be continued, the sound of jingling keys and woosh of fresh air broke Sephiroth out of his concentration, an eyebrow quirked up in question as the 21-year-old wondered why his guardian was home so early.

The silver-haired man didn't even flinch as the front door slammed shut, the heavy steps of his 'father' making their way into the kitchen he now inhabited. Closing his grasp around the glass of water settled within his hands, Sephiroth had to wonder what had crawled up his guardian's behind and festered there _this time_.

"So," Hojo began with a sinister eye as he stood before his adopted son and folded his arms over his chest in anger, "would you _like _to tell me what Gast was talking about when he just so _happened _to mention you going on a date with that _Strife _fellow?"

Sephiroth felt the glass that had been held tightly within his hand shatter against the maddening grip of his fingers, tiny bits of glass now hanging off of his flesh as fresh drops of blood slid down his palm and stained the egg-white tablecloth laid out beneath it.

Hojo didn't even flinch at the sudden break, dark eyes narrowing even further.

It seemed his _son _had a lot of _explaining _to do…


	8. Chapter Eight

A/N: Hello to all who dare enter here…

Wow. That does _not _sound ominous at all. O.o; I suppose it depends on who's saying it and I don't fall into the 'intimidating' category. Lol!

But anyway, today's chapter. ^.^ It's mostly Seph-oriented, but I think you guys will… like that? And it's integral to the plot. Yes. The plot. We have one of those remember? I know… it's so easy to forget with all the cuteness running rampant in this story. Lol. We'll see some more Cloudy next chapter, promise! But let's just say we get some all-important-answers here along with a tiny (and I mean tiny) bit of angst…

Well, c'mon. It _is _a FFVII story! Can't have one without the all-important angst! (Especially if your name rhymes with either Bloud, Bincent or Bephiroth lol)

Enjoy! :-D

Disclaimer: I don't own ANY type of video game let alone Final Fantasy VII and if Panic! At the Disco ever decided to let me own this particular song, let's just say I would be very happy in the pants. Unfortunately… I don't. So I am not. _Poopie._

* * *

"_Swear to shake it up if you swear to listen!_

_Oh, we're still so young, desperate for attention…_

_I aim to be your eyes-_

_Trophy boys, trophy wives!_

_Swear to shake it up if you swear to listen!_

_Oh, we're still so young, desperate for attention…_

_I aim to be your eyes-_

_Trophy boys, trophy wives!_

_Applause, applause,_

_No, wait, wait-_

_Dear studio audience, I've an announcement to make:_

_It seems the artists these days are not who you think,_

_So we'll pick back up on that on another page._

_And I believe this may call for a proper introduction,_

_And well-_

_Don't you see?_

_I'm the narrator and this is just the prologue…_"

-"The Only Difference Between Martyrdom and Suicide Is Press Coverage" By Panic! At the Disco

* * *

_Italics – _Flashback

* * *

Title: _**When You Walk Away**_

Chapter Eight: _The Only Difference Between Martyrdom and Suicide Is Press Coverage_

* * *

_He had never felt this way before. _

_Sephiroth nearly tripped over his own feet as he stared at the young man being presented to his best friend, the dark-haired 18-year-old holding out his hand in a gesture of safety as Sephiroth dove behind the tree he was now currently situated behind. _

'_Who…?' _

_His stomach flipped over on itself as he watched the small blond carefully take the much larger hand within his own, the hesitant frown on his face dripping with insecurity and fear. Zack laughed loudly as he pulled the young boy towards him and trapped him in a one-armed bear hug, giving him a large noogie whilst the body trapped underneath his arm squirmed wildly to get away. Aerith giggled serenely as Gast, whom had been standing right behind the boy, guffawed his joy out loud. _

_Not sure how to take the scene in front of him (nor how to deal with this newfound excitement stirring within his chest), Sephiroth quickly fled the area and marched back into his home, which though empty, was still familiar in all of its cold apathy. _

_That night, he did not dream of pictures or sounds. _

_Once his eyes were closed and his mind shuffling off into that distant realm that straddled reality, all he saw was the clearest shade of blue._

* * *

"And what does that have to do with you?" Sephiroth quietly countered as he stared mournfully at the now-shattered glass embedded in his hand, drops of water clinging onto his fingertips falling down alongside the stains of crimson decorating the marble white top of the table.

"Anything you do is reflected upon me. If you honestly think I _care _who you do or who does _you_," at this Sephiroth nearly tackled the older man and punched him in the face, "then you are sorely mistaken. However this is not just your reputation on the line Sephiroth. I will not have you and your disgusting fascinations ruin what I have now and what I have worked for up until this point. Is that understood?"

Staring at the old scientist glaring at him through clear spectacles, Sephiroth held in the insane urge to stick his tongue out at the old man and proclaim that 'you don't control me or my _needs_!' like a high school girl on her period. Instead he neatly nodded his head, mentally castrating his 'parent' while doing so.

'This doesn't change anything…' The green-eyed Goliath thought to himself as Hojo walked out of the kitchen, head held high in a sign of victory. 'I don't care what he thinks, I don't…'

But even as these words fiddled off into the back of his head, his free hand tightened into a stern fist, alluding to the newfound stress he repressed, though unknowingly. Letting his bloody palm continue to drip spots of bright red onto the table before him, Sephiroth quietly entered his own realm of thought, thinking back on days where everything was still new and not all that complex…

* * *

_Zack laughed as he poked his best friend in the middle of his forehead, quickly swiping his finger back before it could be broken in Sephiroth's steel-like grip. Meandering his gaze from the dark-haired deviant prodding at his figure to the mousy blond settled on the other side of the room, contentedly huddled over some book so that his diminished body would disappear behind the large volume of literature staked around his table much like an impenetrable fortress, Sephiroth made sure that Zack's whole attention was on the text-book in front of him instead of the silver-haired man's ever-roaming consciousness. _

"_Hey Seph," Zack muttered as he dug back down into his psychology book, giggling fits fading off into light chuckles. "I've been meaning to ask, what's up with the bi-weekly visits to the library this past month? I mean, not that I'm not all about our edu-ma-cation, but you never used to be so library-heavy before…" _

"_It's easier to concentrate here, is all." Sephiroth muttered as he subtly shifted his attention back to the AP Chemistry book within his grasp. "You don't have to stay with me if you do not like it Zack." _

"_It's no problem!" The younger college student gave the 21-year-old a corny thumbs-up as his companion rolled his eyes in response. "Besties for life and all that!" _

"_Zack, shut up." Sephiroth monotone response did little to stifle the grin now settled over his own face._

"_Right-o!" _

_Checking to make sure that Zack's attention was back on his book after a moment of silence, Sephiroth once again let his eyes slowly trail over so that the only thing encompassing them was a fall of golden-yellow spikes sticking in every which direction and rumpled red fabric draped over a slender frame in waves of cotton. Not noticing as orbs of violet traced over his form or the sudden quick grin that all but covered the lower half of his friend's face, Sephiroth continued his perusal in peace. _

'_What is it about you…?' The bemusement was fleeting but the emotion still explosive; the impact of the thought special in a wholesomely different way, because he had never had to ask himself that question before, especially about another human being. A person whom he still barely knew even after a whole month of seeing their silhouette every place he visited._

_Sephiroth let his gaze fall back to the book, the question continually ringing in his ears until its distant echo turned the rusty cogs of his head and made his temples pound from the over-exertion of thought. _

'_Never too close, yet always too far…'_

_It was his mantra and he refused to give into temptation so easily. _

_Whatever that temptation may be._

* * *

Sephiroth blinked as his pocket began to vibrate incessantly, thrumming against the outer skin of his thigh and jostling him out of his own memories. Zack's name blinked brightly on the screen, the older man rolling his eyes in annoyance before ignoring the call and letting the phone jump against the mess his kitchen table afforded.

Glancing back at the clock just behind him, Sephiroth winced, knowing that he would have to get ready for class soon if he didn't want to miss that day's lecture. Running a hand through his lengthy moonlit-colored locks, Sephiroth let his mind roam again, knowing he at least had the time to spare to reminisce, if only a small bit…

Cloud deserved that much didn't he?

* * *

_Four months since he had been brought into Gast's home and three months since he had first seen him, and not once had Sephiroth actually spoken to the boy. Zack had attempted to bridge a dialogue between the both of them but Sephiroth refused to be bothered by such and attempted to avoid the golden child at all times. It helped that the teenager usually closed himself off in his room as soon as he got him from school, barely eating with them on the best of days and refusing such substance completely on the worst. _

'_C'mon Seph, what's the worst that can happen?' Zack would happily proclaim as the boy made his way downstairs, blue eyes clouded over with a foggy residue that emanated with the unwillingness the mild-mannered blond felt at having to be surrounded by people he barely knew, mainly Zack and Sephiroth. _

_Sephiroth would just scoff off such attempts and stare at the boy from the corner of his eye, blazing green vibrant against the pale milky white of his face. Once the boy's presence was situated in front of him, Sephiroth would cease to speak and his eyes tracked down the teenager's movements on their own accord as Zack and Aerith quietly watch, two different pairs of speculative looks painted on their faces. _

"_Cloud, why don't you sit down for a second? I just remembered I needed Zack's help with something in the kitchen…" The smiling (conniving) brunette gestured at the blinking puppy-like man confusedly staring at her figure before jumping at the chance to help his girlfriend. _

_Ignoring the wink Zack sent his way Sephiroth barely even flinched as he was left alone with the person whom had been invading his thoughts most often than not these past few months. _

'_Say something…' A little voice tickled into the larger man's ear, green eyes steadily keeping away from the fidgety figure situated across from them. _

_For all of the time they had 'spent' together, Sephiroth had never actually 'acknowledged' Cloud's presence. There would be a nod here or a twitch of a smirk there, but no verbal communication seemed to exist between them. _

_Sephiroth had always feared that Zack would take it the wrong way if he were to do so; the man had a penchant for being over-zealous, and Sephiroth's own usually-silent nature was something he studied thoroughly. The green-haired giant knew that once he spoke that first word to the pretty blond that Zack would latch onto the interest Sephiroth held for the boy almost immediately and nettle it down until he forced the older man to face something he really didn't wish to uncover just yet. _

_But this… _

_This was his perfect moment. _

_In fact, if he didn't know any better…_

'_No. Both Aerith __**and **__Zackary are just not that perceptive.' Sephiroth mentally vacillated, satisfied with his own thoughts._

'_Say something.' The voice muttered again, this time much clearer than before. _

_But what _could _he say?_

'_Zack will be coming in at any moment; just say hello if nothing else!' _

_Carefully, Sephiroth shifted from his spot on the recliner and cleared his throat as silently as he could. The also-unusually quiet teenager immediately caught Sephiroth's movements and turned his head so that his large blue eyes were targeted right into Sephiroth's own vibrant green orbs, mouth set into a questioning line that made the boy look much younger than he actually was. _

'_Just say anything…' _

"_Hello." Sephiroth finally chocked out as he bit back a twitch of his lips, taking in the now-rounded set of bright blue eyes and gaping mouth with a satisfaction that didn't quite seem normal for most people. Finally, after some moments of total silence, the boy timidly smiled back at his fellow companion and nodded back his hello in return. _

"_Hello." Cloud quietly murmured just before Zack ran back into the living room, jumping on top of the older man with little regard to present company._

"_SEPH I MISSED YOU!" _

_Zack laughed at the poisonous glare sent in his direction as the dark-haired college student quickly scampered over to where Cloud was sitting and hid behind the boy's slim figure._

_Sephiroth could only smirk at the smile now infecting Cloud's demeanor without him realizing it, Zack's stupidity once again working in his favor._

_The rest of the night passed in a blur, but the brightness of the blond's beaming grin laid imprinted within Sephiroth's mind as the half-assed laughs and the conspiring grins were laid to rest and he lay on his back in his bedroom, eyes wide open in sudden revelation. _

'_Oh shit…' _

_After that particular night, Sephiroth could honestly say that his life would never quite be the same ever again. _

* * *

Cleaning off the rest of the table of the random debris, Sephiroth felt a smile flit his lips even as the dull pain radiating within his hand throbbed with striking bits of stinging hurt that made him want to punch the wall with his other hand just to concentrate on another source of pain to forget about the other. The memory of that night was both exhilarating and terrifying; the beginning of his own assimilation to the idea that he may have been in-

"Shit!" Nearly dropping the dustpan in his hands as a particularly large piece of glass embedded itself into his already bloody palm Sephiroth hissed out an exhalation of breath and steadied his heartbeat along with his breathing.

Knowing he would have to clean up his wound eventually but dreading it all the same, the lone behemoth threw the washcloth into the sink and threw out the last of the glass that had been littering the table. Glancing down at his hand with a sigh and purse of his lips, Sephiroth made his way to the bathroom with the same type of excitement that he had felt before he had made his decision to pursue his interest with the self-isolated teenager Zack had come to think of as his own protégé.

* * *

"_Seph, what the hell is the matter with you?" _

_Sephiroth bit back a snarl as he moved away from his best friend and dropped onto the mat beneath him, letting the kendo stick that had been held tightly in his hand roll onto the floor alongside him. _

"_You almost killed me out there!" Zack screeched, trying to keep his voice from reaching new pitches whilst deflecting the look of concern Angeal projected to him from the corner of his eye. _

"_I apologize." The long-haired captain clenched out, the adrenaline still pumping wildly into his system. "I was not watching my own strength." _

"_Fuck yeah you weren't!" Throwing his own weapon onto the ground, Zack huffed out a grunt of annoyance as he fell down onto the mat alongside his friend. Whispering so that no one else could hear their conversation, Zack leaned onto Sephiroth's broad shoulder and put a hand on his bicep. "Listen, whatever's up with you, you can tell me. If it had been somebody else out there I'm quite sure you would have killed 'em and we both know we can't afford that kind of stress here! Seph, just let it out." _

"_Nothing is the matter with me." Sephiroth ground out before stomping back onto his feet, leaving the dark-haired college student where he was whilst making his way back to their locker rooms. Waving off Angeal before he could rush his way over, Sephiroth began to tug off the knot of his gi and marched into the showers with a large snarl resting over his lips. _

_He needed to cool off. If he didn't, he was quite sure Zack's prediction would come true and he didn't need to feel guilty about something that could have been avoided. Nearly ripping his hair out by the roots, Sephiroth flipped the shower knob and dunked his head under the ice-cold spray of water rushing down on top of him, hoping that that would at least clear up his head a tiny bit. _

_A flash of gold tinkered at the frayed edges of his mind as the 21-year-old man grunted in frustration, the temperature of the water doing little to distract him from the problem at hand. _

'_Why can't I get you out of my head?!' _

_But that was a useless question to ask himself. _

_Sephiroth knew _exactly _why he couldn't get the younger male out of his head._

_And no amount of denial would be able to make him forget it (or him) so easily. _

'_Will I ever be free of this?' _

_A voice reminiscent to Zack's giggled in the background of his mental domain, letting him know that no, no he would not._

* * *

It was a strange fascination, watching the glass along with the dark drops of slippery crimson liquid slip down from his palm onto the smooth porcelain covering the faucet within his bathroom, the steady stream of water stinging heatedly as it slapped his appendage with its warming sensation.

Idly his fingers tightened over the tweezers they were holding as the glass continued to fall and fall and fall…

Perhaps it was not so strange that he was watching this all happen with such an acute interest but the fact that it was done with little concern over the pain he felt as he did so; the pain he felt only in the far reaches of his mind as Sephiroth found himself focused only on the memories running through his stream of consciousness and not at the emotions attached to the task at hand.

* * *

_Staring down at his hands, Sephiroth tried to keep his attention away from the white-washed walls of his lonely bedroom, body trembling as the images which had been haunting him only five minutes before finally clouded over enough where he could detach himself from the string of emotions which had plagued him upon awakening. _

_That horrifying night…_

_He would never be rid of it. _

_**Never**__._

_Even his dreams were plagued with the memory drenched in black smoke and unbearably hot fire, straws of fear poking out of him until the very images made him want to vomit. Bodies scarred, eyes disintegrated, hands burnt-_

_Why did he make himself relive the horror over and over and over again?!_

'_Because it was your fau-'_

"_Be quiet." Sephiroth whispered, shaky breaths uneven and stumbling against one another. "Shut up. Stop it. I don't _want _this anymore…" _

_But still the images rolled onward, not stopping for a moment. _

_-broken down rooms, scratched walls once beige now painted in black streaks, patches of floorboards sticking up against the holes within the once-carpeted floor-_

_Trying to remember the breathing exercises he had been taught in his preteens, Sephiroth tried to concentrate on something else (anything else), the process though difficult, the only way he could bring himself away from the past he still ran from. _

_-particles of once human hair dried into straw-like flakes, corpse-like fingertips brushing against his face, bloody mouths whispering soothing countenances even as he knew he did not deserve such peace and love-_

_A flurry of gold encased him even as the fires of his own personal hell licked at his proverbial heels, ice-blue glowing as the image projected illuminated with a saving light Sephiroth could not describe. Slowly the shakes and tremors died down until his limbs grew still and his breathing controllable, laying his body back within the sheet as the mattress dipped under the significant weight of his body. _

_A timid smile was stretched against his dream-figure's face, cleansing him of the grip his nightmares held over him. _

_At that moment, there was no denial nor was there any fear. _

_At that moment, his mind cleared away until even that last image which had saved him was no more and his thoughts were dimming over in a hesitant blur._

_Maybe… _

_Maybe what he truly needed was _change.

_Eyes widening for a split second as his fingers intertwined within his lap, the corners of his mouth curved downward as the seedling of a new idea hesitantly bloomed without his consent. _

_Change…_

_Before he could give chase to that newest of thoughts, his eyes closed, Sephiroth's own exhaustion winning the perilous battle once again. _

* * *

Dropping the tweezers into the sink, Sephiroth sighed. Taking a quick glance over at the bandages and gauze sitting right beside him, newer and much more pressing frustrations pushed themselves forefront within his mind.

'Have I always been this stubborn?'

Carefully beginning the process of disinfecting and bandaging his wounds, Sephiroth shook his head at the morbid humor in the situation he was now put in.

'Now that's just a stupid question.

* * *

"_You don't understand." _

"_Yeah, I do!"_

"_No, you do not." _

"_Seph, please-"_

"_You don't get it!" The silver-haired young man with fervent green eyes almost growled as his dark-haired counterpart held his hands up in a placating gesture of peace. _

"_Seph, it's ok. I think I know what it is that you're trying to say…" Zack tried to ease the man back to the conversation at hand as the larger college student across from him cradled the cup of coffee in his hands as if it were the elixir of life, glaring down at the liquid with a burning gaze that did little to hide the man's volatile temper waiting to explode at the first sign of distress. _

"_You have no idea what it is that has been wreaking a havoc in my head." Sephiroth ground out. "I can't think, I can't breathe, I can't live the life I want to… it's never-ending. It just won't leave me alone!"_

"_Right… so this has nothing to do with Cloud then?" Ignoring the dropped-jaw expression settled over his best friend's face, Zack grinned. "Did you really think I couldn't tell Seph? C'mon, I'm your bff…" _

"_How many times have I asked you not to call yourself that? It's completely demeaning to both of our intelligence Zackary, though mainly mine." _

_Zack innocently blinked before tilting his head to the side in mock-naivety. "A million times?" _

"_Zack-"_

"_Best friends forever, Seph!" _

"_Are we here to have a serious conversation or annoy me with your… Zack-ness."_

"_It's a joke, Seph, don't tell me you can't handle them now?" Dropping his preferential silliness, Zack leaned forward and instead pasted a caring smile on his face, knowing that to Sephiroth, this was an intensely sensitive subject. "C'mon, buddy, you can tell me how you feel…" _

"_Feel? _Feel?_" Sephiroth chuckled hysterically as he plopped the coffee mug he was holding down with a heavy snap, making the younger man across from him wince at the sharp noise the collision created. "That's the problem, isn't it?! I don't _want _to feel anything and all of sudden I feel _everything._ I don't want this. I never wanted this. In fact… this was a mistake. I have to go." _

_Before the dark-haired prankster could even begin to stand alongside his friend, Sephiroth dropped a small amount of money onto the table and rushed out of the café they had been inhabiting, the look on his face spelling imminent torture and death to the first person who tried to stop him along the way._

_Zack on the other hand sweat-dropped as his head dropped onto the table, feeling as if he should have somehow anticipated that reaction. _

* * *

'I tried so hard to hide it…'

Rushing out of the bathroom, which was now as clean as it was before Sephiroth had even entered it with his mess of a hand, the brooding college student barely even flinched as he held back a stray piece of wrapping tape with his mouth and practically ran into his room for his books.

'And yet Zack saw through me without even trying.'

Slapping on the last piece of tape with his mouth as he grabbed the handle of his carry-case with his free hand the silver-haired giant barely even flinched as he dropped and twisted his injured palm against the coarse fabric of his jeans. Glancing back at the clock, he realized that if he did not haul his behind into his SUV and rushed out of the house right that instant he would be _dreadfully _late for his first class.

'Was I really so blind to my own actions?'

Sephiroth tried not to think about it as he power-walked his way to the front door, long legs speeding up the process immensely.

'Or did I wish to simply be blind to my own weakness?

"I suppose it doesn't matter now…" Sephiroth whispered to himself. "It's only a matter of time before I win this insipid game."

* * *

"_Aerith's always telling me about how lonely he looks…" _

_Sephiroth hummed quietly in response to his friend's comment, hearing but not quite listening to what Zack was saying to him. After that disastrous day nearly two weeks ago, Zack had spent every moment he could speaking about the one person who still swirled about in his thoughts, albeit without his consent. _

_It did little to help Sephiroth's growing agitation against the situation at hand and he found himself becoming more and more short-tempered with the people who least deserved it. Even Aerith, the most gentle soul around, had faced his wrath more often than not, a peculiar frown gracing her face even as he apologized repeatedly immediately after. _

"_He needs someone he can relate too…" Zack continued, not noticing (or most likely just ignoring) the growing snarl stretching across his friend's face. "Someone who knows what it's like to grow up without parents and hates social interaction as much as he does, though that's nearly impossible to find in of itself…"_

_Letting his homework fall from his hands, Sephiroth opened his mouth, ready to unleash a new string of belittlements set against his companion's favor-_

"_He needs, I don't know… I guess he needs…" Zack choked back a giggle, grinning evilly inwardly as Sephiroth began to shut his mouth ever so slowly and reached for his cup of coffee instead, signaling to his best friend that he was ready for him to go in for the kill- "Somebody like _you _Seph!"_

_Sephiroth nearly choked on his coffee as it sputtered out from his lips, eyes the size of plates. _

_Zack had to admit, he quite almost shit his pants at that look on his best friend's face and with good reason. _

_It was funny as _hell_. _

"_Zackary-!" _

"_No listen to me Sephy-dear, before you get all ape-shit crazy on my ass!" "Cloud isn't assimilating to this place as well as he could be and I can only get him to open up so much without him shutting me out completely! He needs somebody who knows what it's like to, you know, be _new_. And you're the perfect example!"_

"_Zack…"Sephiroth muttered with an exasperated look on his usually put-together face, appearing much older than he actually was. _

"_I won't push you for anything more. I just need you to be his friend. And if you think that maybe you can find the guts to be more…" Throwing up a thumbs-up, Zack grinned wildly. "Well, isn't that just icing on the cake?" _

_Pushing his coffee cup up with one lone finger, Sephiroth calculated his chances of losing his mind over this supposed mission; he could barely get himself to stop thinking about the boy now as it was, spending time with him would only amplify that want…_

'_Want. What do I want?' _

_That, at least, was simple. _

_Without any other thought in mind, Sephiroth stared directly into Zack's exuberantly cheerful violet eyes and let his straight-laced mask come forward. _

"… … _What do I need to know about him then?" _

_Ignoring the calculating smile set on his friend's face as he mentally slapped himself for not saving himself from the insanity he __**knew **__he was plunging himself into, Sephiroth inwardly sighed and counted his chances. _

_He was just doing Zack a favor. _

_A _favor.

_It didn't need to mean anything to him. _

_It didn't._

_But even as his reasoning tried to wrangle itself away from the truth at the situation at hand-_

'_Who am I trying to fool?' _

_Sephiroth's lips began to pull at the sides, the beginnings of a smile crinkling the corners of his mouth as Zack spoke emphatically of Cloud's many habits and quirks. _

'_I only want Cloud.'_

* * *

"And soon I'll finally have him." Sephiroth whispered as he closed the door behind him, eyes slanted with determination. "And I don't care what I have to do to get him."

With that last statement lingering over his lips, Sephiroth pulled out his keys and waltzed over to his car, ready to finish the day with at least one victory at hand; Cloud's complete and total _submission_.


	9. Chapter Nine

A/N: Omg, I cannot believe I waited so damn long to update this story. T.T Ah, but my other stories needed love… THAT'S MY EXCUSE AND I'M STICKING TO IT!

Ah ha… yeah. Don't mind that. In fact, just ignore it altogether. I find my mood-swings quite annoying as well. -.-; This story is definitely one of my favs to work on at the moment, but I am thinking about shortening it. 20 chapters? Am I out of my mind (considering all the other stories I have to work on, yeah I probably am)? So that may be something to look forward to. Though I would definitely miss Socially-Awkward-and-Deviously-Sexy!Sephiroth and Paranoid-but-still-so-Oblivious-and-Cute!Cloud. They've become so precious to me. :(

Oh well. XD Just get to reading missy/mister! (I don't judge! :3)

Disclaimer: I don't own any part of the FF/KH/Squeenix universe nor do I own "Breathe" by Michelle Branch (yeah, cuz that wasn't obvious or anything…) I just owns ze plot. Boo hoo.

* * *

"_I've been driving for an hour_

_Just talking to the rain…_

_You say I've been driving you crazy_

_And it's keeping you away!_

_So just give me one good reason;_

_Tell me why I should stay!_

_'Cause I don't wanna waste another moment _

_In saying things we never meant to say._

_And I take it just a little bit,_

_I hold my breath and count to ten,_

_I've been waiting for a chance to let you in-_

_If I just breathe;_

_Let it fill the space between,_

_I'll know everything is alright._

_Breathe-_

_Every little piece of me,_

_You'll see,_

_Everything is alright!_

_If I just breathe_…"

-"Breathe" by Michelle Branch

* * *

Title: _**When You Walk Away**_

Chapter Nine: _Breathe_

* * *

The heavy feeling of being stared at only intensified as Cloud's day continued to pass. Blue eyes seemed to develop a permanent twitch as the schoolboy found himself continually looking over his shoulder, the whites of his eyes becoming streaked with red veins.

'_WHAT THE HELL?' _

It was really starting to take its toll on the poor boy.

Slinging his book-bag over his shoulder, the usually-broody boy slammed his locker shut and quickly strode into the mass of bodies strung along the floors of the school's hallways. Paranoid blue eyes shifting every which way every other second, Cloud quickly made his way into his English class and ducked into his usual seat. His teacher, a tall red-head with his head stuck in his usual book, _Loveless_, barely waved his hand as he leaned back into his chair and kept reading, teal-green eyes scanning the words in front of them with a flourish only a man like Genesis Rhapsodos could have.

'_Final class of the day, Cloud. Final class of the day!_'

-And then he'd have to go meet up with Sephiroth, who was probably already outside waiting for the high-school student, ready to molest him at any moment's notice.

'… … … … _Shit._'

Letting his head fall onto the smooth surface of his desk, Cloud didn't even notice as the same pair of sea-green eyes that had been formerly scanning the book in front of them lifted themselves up from the page and began to dissect him piece by piece. Narrowing slightly in grim satisfaction Genesis snapped his book shut just as the bell rang; a multitude of students rushed inside the tiny classroom and sat themselves into their normal seating arrangements as the final echoes of the bell settled into complete and total silence.

25 pairs of eyes didn't even flinch as Genesis let his lanky legs fall onto the ground and stood up, smirking almost deviously at the children sweating buckets in pure nervousness.

"So… about last night's homework. We'll be having a pop quiz on it today along with a two-page summary on what you read last night. I'll be expecting your five page essays on the value of literature tomorrow as well…"

A series of groans and moans met Genesis' ears in smooth symphony of sound, his smirk transforming into a large malicious grin.

'God, I _love_ being a teacher.'

* * *

"What's the matter Aerith?"

Aerith smiled as she stared up at her professor, the older woman's kind eyes brightening her day immensely. Elfè, a strong demanding professor with a knack for a rough aptitude towards undisciplined behaviors and crude language, hid a disarming smile behind her world-weary eyes. Knowing just how much grief Aerith hid behind her own calm gaze, she knew she was a bit more lenient towards the quiet girl than she was towards others within her class but she just could not help it. There was something about Aerith that inspired peace and tranquility, even when the young 18-year-old was anything but.

"You look down today." Elfè smiled cautiously. "You know you can talk to me about it."

"I'm just worried whether I'm doing the right things by Cloud." Aerith admitted quietly. "Perhaps I am pushing this growing relationship with Sephiroth a bit too much. He may not be ready for such intimacy just yet and I don't want either of them to get their hopes for nothing."

"From what you've told me about Cloud, it seems as though he needs the rough treatment." Elfè pat the discouraged teen on the shoulder, knowing just how rough Aerith could be on herself when she doubted her own decisions. "He's overly cautious and doesn't want to take chances… it took him this long to even begin to open up to you, God knows how long it would take to open up to somebody else, especially somebody like Sephiroth. I don't think you're doing the wrong thing here, Aerith and especially not for the wrong reasons."

"So… I'm not hurting him, right?" Aerith squeaked out, leaning back against her desk as she squeezed her books against her ample chest.

"I didn't say that. But in this case… maybe that's for the best. He needs to learn that with taking chances comes the sometimes inevitable hurt that goes along with them." Backing away from the broody brunette in front of her, Elfè shrugged her shoulders. "Besides, even he does get hurt, it wouldn't be your fault. It's really up to Sephiroth whether Cloud gets hurt here or not."

"He's been hurt enough…" Aerith began before cutting herself off. Cloud's business was really not hers to tell and she had been vocal enough to her teacher without having to resort to digging deeper within Cloud's past so that the older woman could understand just _why _Cloud was as paranoid as he was and just _why _she was as worried as _she _was. "But it's nothing. I suppose I can only continue to do what I've been doing and protect Cloud the best I can."

"By doing what?" Elfè chuckled at the thought of Aerith being so defensive _for _anybody but her father. 'But Cloud's her brother now… what else could you expect from somebody who holds family to such a high regard like Aerith does?'

"By watching Sephiroth of course. And making sure he doesn't do anything… _untoward _to my baby brother." Aerith smiled sweetly, the vicious gleam within her pure green eyes scaring even Elfè. "I'll see you tomorrow professor! Thank you for making me feel better!"

Elfè laughed nervously as she watched the now perky brunette skip out of her classroom, sweat running down the back of her neck.

'_I do _not _wish to be in Sephiroth's position right now…_'

* * *

"Alright. Class dismissed everyone-" Genesis stated as he cleared the chalkboard of all the unnecessary notes he had wrote in as the students behind him rushed towards the door like a herd of animals. "Except for you, Strife."

Cloud gulped, almost dropping his book as a pair of piercing turquoise-colored eyes met his own deep blue over the teacher's shoulder. "I need to speak with you, Cloud."

'_FUCKING FISHSTICKS!_'

"Of course, sir." Cloud pulled on one of his golden-yellow bangs and smiled unsteadily. Making his way (_incredibly slowly of course_) towards the still-erasing teacher perched in front of the chalkboard, the fidgety blond felt his smile slowly fray at the edges as small puffs of dust infiltrated his nostrils and made him cough into his sleeve. "What… did you need to… talk about Mr. Rhapsodos?"

"According to a very rambunctious puppy currently living with me, it's been brought to my attention that Sephiroth has finally begun courting you." Genesis spoke steadily, as if he had rehearsed all of this beforehand. "Zack believes that you are the one that everyone should be concerned about. I do not know much about your past-"

Cloud opened his mouth-

"Nor do I care to know to be quite honest." Only to shut it a second later, a grateful look perched within his face. "However, I am prone to think otherwise. You see, Sephiroth, as much as I _loathe _to admit it, is my _friend_. And I have known him long enough to be able to tell that this is the first time he has _ever _put in the effort to win someone over, let along put in the effort to _care _about someone other than the people who force themselves onto him (i.e. Zackary, of course). He is… _not quite normal_ and I'm quite sure you've noticed all this before the two of you even began this… whatever it is you're doing."

Putting down the eraser (which had left heavy white stains on his manicured hand), Genesis gave Cloud the most intimidating glare he could muster (which was pretty freaking scary to a 16-year-old teenager with paranoia issues). "Sephiroth is not the most competent person socially and he may either come off as too strong or too indifferent. This is not on purpose. This is not his fault. Do you understand what I am trying to tell you in letting you know this?"

"Um… _no_…"

"I'll make this clear, then, so that even _you _may understand. If I so much as _hear _that you've broken the man's heart, even if _accidentally_, or for a misunderstanding or just on a fucking _whim_, I will make sure that the rest of the time you spend in this high-school will be a living hell. I will do _everything _in my power to keep you here and _enjoy_ the mental anguish you'll be forced into because of that fact. Sephiroth is not to be played with, and if so, that privilege belongs to me and me alone. _Now _do you understand what I am trying to say Cloud or do I need to further specify?"

"_Y-yeah_…" Cloud squeaked out; face flushed and full of fear. "_Got it_!"

"Good. I'm glad we've had this chat! I feel as if we understand each other so much _better _now! Wait till I tell Angeal just how great this talk was!" Genesis grinned, face nowhere near as frightening as it had been just five seconds before. "You're dismissed, Strife! I'm sure Sephiroth is already outside and waiting! Remember what we talked aboooout!"

The young schoolboy simply nodded, backing away from the bipolar school teacher like a skittish animal about to attacked. As soon as he hit the hallway, Cloud shut the door closed behind him and ran down to his locker. Eyes wide and full of panic, Cloud could only imagine just how scary Sephiroth himself was when he was in full-defense mood if his _friends _were as intimidating as they were _without him. _

Genesis on the other hand simply smirked, wiping his hands on one of his student's tests. Picking up his favorite book, the redheaded English teacher hummed under his breath as he returned to his former passage.

'_And Angeal says I don't know how to talk to people. Ha! My social skills beat Sephiroth's and Zack's by far!_'

Sadly enough, Genesis did not see anything wrong with comparing himself to two of the most socially-deficient people within Midgar and continued on with his reading with a large grin on his face.

* * *

Sephiroth sighed as he leaned back against the school gate, his tall figure doing little to bring attention away from himself. Long silver hair glistened spectacularly where it lay over his leather-clad shoulder, primly kept under control in the form of a long loose braid. Green eyes sparkled, lengthy irises expanding as Cloud's form finally evacuated the school and marched towards his lackadaisical figure. Shrugging off his own jacket so that his loose white tee-shirt could be seen, Sephiroth did not think anything of the strange look nestled within Cloud's expression as the boy practically glomped his side as soon as he was close enough and held onto his arm.

"Cloud…?"

"You," Cloud muttered underneath his breath "have the craziest fucking friends _ever_!"

"Uh… ok?" Sephiroth blinked, not quite sure how to respond to his companion's sudden bought of affection and cursing. "I suppose this is true. May I ask what brought that along, Cloud?"

"_No_." The boy answered quietly, leading them both towards his house. "Only know that it's true and so far _all of them _creep me the hell out."

"I doubt there isn't anything about me that _doesn't _creep you out, Cloud." Sephiroth murmured back at the blond hanging off of his arm. "My friends, I believe, are the least of my concerns."

"It's not-you just… _argh_." Cloud shoved himself away from the tall man, eyes burning with righteous anger. "You are just _so hard to understand_! One minute you're all apathetic about everything, as if you don't care about anything I say or do and the next minute you're affectionate and look as if what I say means the _world _to you, as if I could break you or something… I just can't keep up with you Sephiroth. _You confuse me_!"

"What about my liking you has to be confusing, Cloud?" Sephiroth plainly asked. "I wish for you to be mine. There is nothing confusing about my intentions. I admit that my social inadequacies are less than stellar but I am willing to improve upon them for both of our sakes if you would give me the chance to show you that I mean everything that I say."

"I just… don't understand. Why do you keep playing with me like this?" Cloud whispered. "I'm not… anything special."

"You have said that to me once before Cloud and I am inclined to disagree. You _are _special. I know it to be true."

"You don't know _anything _about me." Cloud replied truthfully. "And you smothering me isn't helping anything!"

"I am not-"

"YES YOU ARE." The blue-eyed teen practically huffed out. "Following me around, asking me personal questions out of the blue, KISSING ME WITHOUT PERMISSION! You are _killing _me! I don't even know what the hell we are or what you really want; telling me you want to be with me answers nothing! How can I trust you, Sephiroth, when I barely even _know _you?"

"How can I get to know you if you won't even give me the chance to do so?" The solemn look on Sephiroth's face made it all the more intimidating, a pang of fear spiraling up Cloud's spine as he froze where he stood. "I am attempting to accommodate my methods to your personality but your mood swings make it exceedingly difficult to do so. I am trying the best I can, Cloud. What else can I do to make you see that I am serious about getting to know and having you get to know me as well?"

"You can be yourself, Sephiroth." Large blue eyes began to water lightly as the 16-year-old student shoved his hands into his jacket gave the older man a small smile. "Just… be yourself. And maybe things won't be like _this_."

"I don't think you want that." Sephiroth lamented. "I am not exactly… normal."

"Psh. As if any of the people in this city or mentally stable." Cloud grinned. "Including me."

"So… does this mean that you'll actually give me a chance now?"

Cloud gave the 21-year-old college student a penetrating stare, blond locks of hair slumped around his face as if to imitate Cloud's earlier depressive state. "I don't think I'll ever be able to fully trust you, Sephiroth. There's just something about you that puts me off, but… I can try to if you promise to stop stalking me wherever I go and actually _try _to have some semblance of a relationship with me."

"I am sure such arrangements could be made." Sephiroth muttered without hesitation, shucking his leather jacket over his shoulder. Cloud grinned as he halted his steps and allowed the older man's free arm to come around his shoulders. A small but incredibly bright blush flourished over the teenager's cheeks as they continued their way to Cloud's home, not noticing the devious smirk growing against Sephiroth's lips.

Cloud had asked that he not _stalk him_ but said nothing about pursuing him discreetly. All Sephiroth had to do was make sure that he didn't get caught, and with someone as moodily oblivious as Cloud as prey, it wouldn't even be a challenge. After all, how long had he been watching the boy without so much as a twitch in his direction?

The strange serpentine smile stayed on Sephiroth's lips even as he dropped the young boy off at his home and was given another gentle smile for his efforts. Though it would take a bit more time, Sephiroth knew that he was incredibly close to breaking through the blond's suspicious nature and claim him fully for his own. Tapping the cell-phone settled within his pocket, Sephiroth felt the smirk on his lips lengthen to epic proportions.

'_Oh… Zack is not going to believe this_.'

* * *

"_YOU DID WHAT?_"

And Sephiroth could always pride himself on being right if nothing else.

"Yes…" The older man crooned out into the phone's receiver, lying prone on his bed. "And he was quite receptive towards me once our situation was cleared up."

"_Seph, no offense, but I don't think this is a good idea._"

"And what do you mean by that?"

"… … … _It's just… you come off a little… strong sometimes._"

"Everyone keeps saying that…" Sephiroth grumbled to himself. "I have no idea what it is you all are talking about."

"_You have got to be fucking kidding me, Sephiroth._"

Sephiroth winced. You knew things were going downhill once Zack used his full name.

"_Did you conveniently forget about all those 'wrong place, wrong time' quotations that you do? Or the random facial expressions that you pull out of your ass at the most inconvenient of times; so random that even _I _at times have to wonder where you come up with them? Or your violent tendencies? Demanding personality? Do I really need to keep going because I'm pretty sure the both of us know I can._"

Sephiroth rolled his eyes after the first sentence, beginning to feel a bit more inadequate with each passing word.

"Well I apologize for being the way I am but your way of doing things is not working Zackary! Cloud plain as day stated that your way was, and I use your phrase here, 'freaking him the fuck out!'." Taking in a deep breath, Sephiroth thought back on the look on Cloud's face as he opened up to him for the first actual time in the face of actually progressing with their venture into a relationship. "Being his friend is not enough for me Zack. I need this, and something tells me that he does too."

"… … _And so the pupil has surpassed the teacher._"

"Don't be an idiot Zack." Sephiroth muttered with a red face that his friend could not see, the howling laughter on the other end making him feel better despite the fact it was aimed at his own self. Glancing over at the clock beside him, Sephiroth wondered what Cloud was doing.

'_Soon, I won't even have to wonder_.' The silver-haired man snickered within his head, clicking the phone shut once Zack's annoying guffaws began to seriously irritate his sensitive eardrums. '_Soon, he'll be right where he belongs…_'

* * *

"Dad! You're home." Cloud exclaimed as he leapt the final step inside and smiled over at his adopted father, the large grin on Gast's face blinding both Aerith, who was sitting on her couch reading her Chemistry book, and Cloud with its toothy glow. "I thought you would be at the lab today!"

"Ah, I'm supposed to be, but it can wait." Gast waved the boy's concern off with an absentminded grin. "I actually wanted to have a talk with you first Cloud, if you don't mind."

"Ah…" Already knowing just what it was that was on his father's mind, Cloud internally cringed at the thought of having to speak about these types of _things _with his adoptive parent. "Do I… have to?"

"Not if you don't want to, but…" One look at Gast's put-down face broke Cloud's resolve before it even had a chance to actually build itself up.

"Fine!" Tugging the scientist into the kitchen, Cloud flopped into the nearest chair and nervously tugged on a stray piece of blond hair. "W-what did you want to talk about?"

"This… thing you have going with Sephiroth," Cloud quietly gulped as his father fiddled with his glasses, "is it serious, Cloud?"

"Um… I don't really… know." Gast gave the boy a look. "I don't! He just… and I just… why are you asking me this anyway?"

"You're my son aren't you? Can't I protect you once in awhile?"

Cloud blinked as he lowered his head shamefully, his heart racing both painfully and yet…

"Shouldn't you be more worried about him? You've known him longer after all…"

"As much as I consider Sephiroth family, he is still not my son. I know all there is to know about Sephiroth just as I know all there is to know about you, Cloud. If you'll let me, I'd like to help you and… be there for you if nothing else."

Smiling to himself as laid a hand over his head and ruffled his wayward golden locks, Cloud cast aside all of his hesitations and looked his father in the eye. "I'm confused and he's done nothing to really clear up the mess within my mind but I think that even if we're not serious now, it's a possibility that we could be in the future. Does that… does that bother you? If you say so, I'll stop seeing him! I'll do whatever it is you think is right"

"Just do what you think is best, Cloud. The only thing I wish for is for you to be happy." Gast gave his son a pat on the back. "Everything else should fall right into place once you do."

Giving the older man a smothered grin, Cloud once again wondered what he could have done to deserve such a caring family.

'_This can't be temporary._' A warm voice echoed his inner-most feelings. '_Not anymore_.'

* * *

_Next Day…_

* * *

"Sephiroth?" Cloud blinked as he opened the front door of his home, the morning sun managing to crawl through the bland gray skies signifying the coming of winter. "You're… here."

"I wished to walk you to school." Digging his hands into the pockets of his leather duster, Sephiroth flinched as Cloud's eyebrow shot up to his hairline. "I would have called your cell-phone but I didn't wish to awaken you so I… waited for you."

Cloud once again blinked.

"How long have you been standing here, Sephiroth?"

"Only a couple of hours. It was quite refreshing to tell you the truth." Sephiroth smirked as the young boy smacked himself on the head, mumbling something about creepy college students and their lack of sensibilities.

Sephiroth could only assume he was speaking about Zack.

"Time to go?"

Instead of being intensely weirded-out by the much larger silver-haired man, Cloud felt a smile burst along the tips of his lips. Grabbing Sephiroth's hand and clasping it between his fingers, he somehow felt lighter. Ignoring the shocked gape Sephiroth sported as they walked down his balcony steps, Cloud leaned in just a bit closer than necessary towards his newly-acquired 'friend'(/boyfriend but who was keeping track?).

Oblivious to the victorious smirk once again decorating Sephiroth's lips, Cloud continued onto school with a large grin on his usually-blank face and a hopeful outlook on a wholly unknown future.

For once, Cloud could say he was closest to happiness than he had been in a long, long time.


	10. Chapter Ten

A/N: God you guys… I finally finished the next chapter. T.T You have NO IDEA how much I struggled with this chappie. I'm STILL not 100 percent satisfied with it but I like it enough to post it now. Lol. Every word was quite literally a fight; I'm hoping you guys enjoy it though, since I have a soft spot for this chapter (especially the end ;-D).

My playlist for this story is quite amusing though. I kept going through all the present (and future) songs and going through a variety of emotional torrents; I'm guessing that's part of the reason this chapter just _didn't _want to be written. Hopefully the next one won't be as bitchy to deal with. -.-;

Hope you enjoy kiddies. I tried my best after all. ^.^

Disclaimer: I don't own anything part of the SquareEnix universe (hahahaha they have universes now that I think about it) nor do I own "Party in Your Bedroom" by Cash Cash. Have a nice day. :-)

* * *

"_Walking down the street_

_Keeping hush-hush on the scene-_

_No one knows you; _

_Such a mystery!_

_Opposite of fun till you turn the power on_

_Then you come out turning up the heat!_

_Upstairs all alone-_

_One click for a show-_

_Your roof is on fire;_

_You're losing control!_

_There's a party in your bedroom all night long!_

_There's a lot of talk about you…_

_Cause there's a party in your bedroom all night long!_

_Pretty girl, it's your show, _

_Let it go when you're alone!_

_Lips sealed tight, _

_Don't say goodnight._"

-"Party in Your Bedroom" by Cash Cash

* * *

Title: _**When You Walk Away**_

Chapter Ten: _Party in Your Bedroom_

* * *

"You really didn't have to do this," Cloud almost staggered over his feet as Sephiroth marched mechanically to his school, his eyes on the lookout for something or someone, though what or who it was the blond-haired schoolboy didn't know. The steely glare set within his gaze, the thin lines making up the grimacing scowl perched over his lips; Cloud had never seen anything more terrifying, and he still did not know what it was that had made Sephiroth so angry in the span of five minutes.

"Are you always this moody?" The blue-eyed teen muttered underneath his breath, refusing to acknowledge the hypocrisy of his own question.

Sephiroth did not even deign to answer the question.

"Will you at least tell me what it is you're looking for?" Cloud practically shouted as the march turned into a full sprint, the man's continued silence much more confusing to the timid blond than the erratic behavior his friend was exhibiting.

"Nothing to worry about, they're not here today!" The silver-haired juggernaut huffed out.

Cloud bit his lip as he thought about the passing statement, his natural worrying disposition flaring up without his consent. The dash to his school went by in a blur, Sephiroth's long legs making up for Cloud's scrawny ones, which never seemed to actually touch the ground at the speed the giant college student had progressed to once his excitement got the best of him and was released in the whirlwind sprint both men were now engaged in.

"What do you mean they're not-"

"Here we are!" Sephiroth called out, not a single strand of silver hair out of place or breath halted from the sudden dash to Cloud's school. "With not a moment to spare."

"But… I wasn't going to be late." Cloud pathetically called out as he huffed exasperatedly, out of breath and out of patience.

"Exactly. Now you _definitely _will not be late." The college student replied smartly. Handing the boy his book-bag, which had been strapped the larger man's other shoulder so as to not hinder the blond boy's trek to school, Sephiroth hesitated for barely a moment, fingers levitating over golden-yellow locks. Taking the plunge, Cloud blinked as long thin fingers carded through his downy feather-like hair, unconsciously nuzzling against the hand dragging against his head.

"My father used to do this before I had to go to school." Sephiroth softly admitted, the timid smile on his face both attractive and unexpected. "I hope to do this for you every day. Do you accept?"

"Uh…" Once again, Cloud wondered if Sephiroth took classes on how to confuse individuals, but for once he would not complain. Not if they yielded such spectacular results. "Ok. I guess I don't mind…"

"Excellent." Sephiroth's smirk slowly transformed into a tiny heartfelt smile, the appearance of such an expression softening the older man's features immensely. "Then there is only one last thing I must do before I take my leave."

"Huh?" Was the only sound that managed to make its way out of Cloud's mouth before a pair of slightly chapped thin lips were pressed against his own, the hand that had been weaving through his hair just minutes before now clutched tightly onto the back of the blond student's head, lightly gripping the short strands of golden hair set just over the boy's neck. Though the kiss remained chaste Cloud felt the inevitable blush blossom over his cheeks, stunned motionless while blue eyes blankly regarded wide-open bright green.

A sea of blushes and gaping mouths caught Cloud's sight once he fell out of his stupor, Sephiroth's face, still dangerously close to his own, not able to drown out the equally quiet murmurs or loud exclamations of the high-school students watching their every move. A large smirk belied the older man's intentions; Sephiroth's words may have induced a strange tranquility within Cloud but his face when examined gave away the college student's _real _thoughts.

"Why did you do that?" Cloud harshly whispered, the burning flush of his cheeks doing little to hide his embarrassment. "Now the whole school is going to think I'm your property or something!"

The smarmy smile on Sephiroth's face showed no dislike towards this idea.

"You-you-I told you that-"

"You asked me to be myself Cloud," Sephiroth calmly, if not authoritatively, stated. "Now you must live with the consequences of what such a demand may incur."

Jaw practically dropping onto the gravely ground, Cloud gaped as Sephiroth planted one more kiss upon the blond schoolboy's cheek and smoothly walked past the familiar gates without a second glance behind him, smirking audaciously as Cloud attempted to pull himself together.

'What the _hell_…'

* * *

"_Shit_."

Angeal blinked as he stared at his young protégé. Zack, ever hyper and optimistic, was now laying flat on the ground, violet eyes as wide as could be.

"What's wrong, puppy?"

"Have I ever told you how disturbing that nickname is?" Zack grumbled as he stayed where he was, the dojo around him without any other students but himself.

"Why do you think I chose it?" The rugged coach smirked as he sat down beside his student, right hand ruffling the wisps of wild dark locks smattered upon the ground. "Now tell me, what's the matter Zack?"

"Uh… well, you're gonna think I'm bat-shit crazy, Angie."

"…"

"Oh, whatever!" Zack's cheeks puffed out at the disbelieving look on Angeal's face, dark eyes swirling with laughter. "Well, um… my 'Seph's done something incredibly stupid!' senses are tingling! Like, bad! I fear for Cloud's safety, Angeal! CLOUD'S SAFETY!"

The disbelieving look was now crippled with incredulity, Angeal obviously biting back a large grin from his rugged features-

"STOP JUDGING ME, DAMN IT!"

Only to sigh as he shook his head, watching the younger man next to him break down in faux-tears.

Not even the beginning of the day and already he had had his fill of Zack.

How… predictable.

* * *

The furious blush stayed with Cloud throughout the whole school day, dodging burning glares (Genesis), curious gazes (random students) and threatening gestures (fan-girls) throughout the entirety of his classes and recesses. If not for the steadfast fortitude made steel-tough due to years of being alone, Cloud knew he would have unbuckled and snuck back to his home where he knew no one was waiting for him (or willing to judge him).

It was at times like these that he missed what it was like to truly have a best friend to back him up…

"Hey Cloudie!"

Though not enough to be _too _regretful about the fact.

"_Yuffie…_" Cloud groaned, staring at his locker with a mournful gaze that spoke volumes about his mood. "Please don't bother me right now…I am _really_ not in the mood."

"I'm just checking up on you Cloud, _jeez_! From what I've heard about this morning…" The short wutain school girl flipped her short hair back from her eyes, lips pouting in annoyance as she purposely trailed off. "But if you don't want to divulge your dirty little secrets to _me_ then _fine_. You ARE still coming to my party though right?"

"Of course he is, yo!"

Cloud jumped two feet off of the ground as a thin arm wrapped around his shoulders, bright red hair encasing the nimble blond's vision. Reno's face popped up within the curtain of red, winking down at the short boy held in his grip. "We need to show Cloud here how to have a good time! One that _doesn't_ involve giant silver-haired heroes!"

"Did I just hear right? Cloud have a good time?" Two hunkering jocks chuckled as they pushed the redhead off of Cloud's shoulders and roughed his hair up a bit. "That's possible?"

"Shut up, Kunsel." Cloud muttered under his breath, not liking the feeling of being surrounded by people he barely interacted with (on a good day). "I do _so _know how to have a good time."

"Then we'll be waiting for you tonight, Cloudster! I can't wait to introduce you to a little thing called 'booze'!" Reno saluted before tailing after a fuming blonde girl rushing past them, the name 'Elena! Wait up yo!' carrying down the hallway as he did so. Yuffie gave Cloud a sympathetic pat on the shoulder before rushing off her own, staying uncharacteristically quiet throughout most of the 'encounter'.

Cloud merely rolled his eyes and threw his fist at his locker, the pounding pain thrumming through his knuckles nothing compared to the migraine smashing against his temples, clear blue eyes watering with frustration. Unbeknownst to the 16-year-old, teal-green eyes remained glued to the tiny teen's despondent figure, amusement radiating endlessly through the older man's slouched posture and sickeningly sweet smile.

Knowing he had enough to torment Sephiroth when he saw him later, Genesis held in his triumphant laughter and thought about plans to come.

* * *

Once Cloud reached the school's gates, it was obvious to the silver-haired college student that _perhaps _kissing the reclusive boy in front of his school so that everyone could see (that he was Sephiroth's of course) might not have been the best of ideas.

'_No shit Sherlock._' Not-Zack's voice whispered in his ear, a million and one come-backs already spilling forth without Sephiroth's permission.

Steadying himself for what was sure to be a confrontational (maybe) conversation, the green-eyed giant shoved his hands within the pockets of his leather duster and gave the younger boy a cursory glance.

"What's the matter, Cloud?"

For a moment the blond was completely quiet, laying way for Sephiroth's fears to bury themselves deeper within his psyche.

'_He didn't like the kiss, I was too aggressive, he doesn't like who I really am, all of this was for nothing-_'

"It's that stupid party I was telling you about…" Cloud quietly admitted without much hesitance. Sephiroth blinked as the subject of his… unwanted affections was bypassed completely, not sure if this was a good thing or not. "I don't really want to go but Yuffie is practically threatening my manhood if I don't show up. I'm not really all too in with the 'party' scene if you haven't noticed."

"Oh." Cloud gave the man a narrowed stare, bordering dangerously close to a menacing (for Cloud) glare.

"And… I'm kinda sad… _you _aren't coming with me. I know you're probably busy today and tomorrow you have practice and I… I guess I…" Stopping in their tracks, both man and boy sized each other up, testing each other on two completely different things. "After what you did this morning, I was really mad. I mean, everyone kept staring at me like I was a bigger freak than usual. I kept telling myself that when I saw you, I would just let it all out. But that's stupid. Why get mad at your for something I should've saw coming? You haven't been subtle… I guess I just wanted somebody to take out all this anger on. And you just seemed like such a perfect target…"

"What changed your mind…?" Sephiroth quietly questioned.

"You did. Seeing you waiting for me at the gate, standing so regally as if that was where you belonged; you moved me." Hugging himself through the fabric of the bomber jacket he wore, Cloud felt the inevitable blush brighten his cheeks once again. "You've been so honest with your feelings, even if nothing else. You may do and say stupid things sometimes (ok a lot of the time)… but you stay true to yourself. I wish I could be like that. For some odd reason, I wish I could be more like you."

Speechless beyond belief, Sephiroth could only think of one thing to say at that moment; something he would probably regret later on, in retrospect of what Cloud had just outright admitted to him.

"If you wish me to, I will come to Yuffie's party with you."

"_No_." Cloud answered immediately. "Listen, I would love for you to come, but after your spectacle this morning, I'll already be facing enough harassment as it is. Besides that, all you've been doing lately is following me around and calling me and just generally being in my… area…"

"It is not that serious, Cloud. I would not mind accompanying you if you wished me to and if anyone dared to say anything I would crush them like a bug and eat their remains."

The response was obviously not reassuring in the least for poor Cloud.

"Sephiroth, it's not that I don't want you to come but I think after you're little _performance_ this morning the last thing either of us need is to add more fodder to the fire, you know?" At the confused look still brandished upon Sephiroth's face-

"… … … No, I don't." Sephiroth even added a shrug for good measure. "Not really, no."

Cloud shook his head as he continued walking on.

Sometimes…

Just sometimes…

Sephiroth's own naïveté beat Cloud's by a _landslide._

* * *

"Are you sure?"

"Yes."

"Positive?"

"_Positive_."

"… … Rea-"

Cloud nearly pushed Sephiroth off of the banister he was standing on, eyes nearly shut from glaring. "YES! REALLY! I AM GOING TO BE FINE. NOW GO DO WHATEVER IT IS YOU DO WHEN YOU'RE NOT STALKING ME AND ENJOY YOURSELF OK?"

"I will miss you." Sephiroth's quiet voice echoed against the stillness of the air, the breeze that had been floating by them mysteriously non-existent once the words escaped the older man's mouth.

Blue eyes nearly watered again but Cloud suppressed the urge. Nodding after a hesitating moment, Cloud felt his lips tremble as they opened-

"I'll miss you too."

And inwardly stabbed himself in the head as he realized, with a man as dangerously possessive as Sephiroth, he had just inadvertently signed a binding marriage certificate which would be upheld by the law-

_Sephiroth's_ law.

The now smirking 21-year-old nodded his acceptance of Cloud's response (which was the equivalent of a fucking 'I do!' in his demented mind) and walked away from the Gast home with a surprising spring in his step.

Cloud on the other hand was left with a massive migraine, high blood pressure and a severe urge to mutilate the first person he came into contact with.

'Where the hell is Zack when you need him?'

* * *

"ACHOO!"

Angeal quirked an eyebrow as Zack fell over from the impact of the sneeze, purple-blue eyes watering as the young man hacked out a cough of equal vigor. Genesis, who had just gotten home, glared at him in disgust whilst unloading a can of disinfectant within the area Zack had just sneezed.

Shaking his head at the dramatics displayed before him, Angeal returned to his magazine and sighed.

One of the perks of living with both 'The Zack' and 'The Queen' (as Angeal so lovingly nicknamed his lover).

'_Joy_.'

* * *

"Are you ready, Cloud?" Aerith sweetly called out as she fixed her dress, already dressed and ready for her night out with Zack. After wrangling with Cloud for a couple of hours (aka forcing him to get dressed with the threat of leaving him in Sephiroth's care for a week while Aerith and Professor Gast _conveniently_ went on a surprise trip), the usually patient brunette was now at her wit's end.

"NOOOOO."

Rolling her eyes in sisterly-exasperation, Aerith knocked on the door three more times. "Cloud, please stop being so difficult! Would it _kill _you to be more social?"

"I'm social!"

"…"

"-lly retarded aren't I?" Cloud finished lamely as he opened the door, wondering why he had even thought denying such truth would get him out of the torture that was Yuffie's party. "Why do I have to do this again?"

"Because I love you and wish to see you happy, even if you don't think as such?"

"_Ughhhhh…_"

"Cloud Strife-Gast! How dare you doubt my love for you!"

"I'm sorry Aerie…" Cloud pouted, tugging at his lavender and turquoise colored hoodie. "I just don't… I want… I want to stay _home_."

"I know Cloud," the green-eyed flowery-woman sighed "but this… it's not good for you. All you've done is stay home and hope for the best and look where that's gotten you. I think you'll have more fun at this party than you think."

"AEERRRIIITTTH! ARE YOU READY?"

"And there's Zack." Aerith stated unnecessarily. Fixing her bow and Cloud's hair with both hands simultaneously, Aerith practically hauled her younger brother down the stairs in a fit of strength that Cloud didn't even realize she possessed. "Now we are going to drop you off at that party and you are going to have a good time like the teenager you are _supposed _to be. You are not going to brood, you are not going to isolate yourself and you are _not_ going to get yourself drunk and make me sic both Zack _and _your boyfriend on you. Do you understand?"

Cloud rolled his eyes as Aerith said the words 'drunk' and 'boyfriend'. To have the young woman automatically associate the word with Sephiroth was bad enough but to have nearly everyone insinuate that he couldn't hold his liquor? Did they _not _realize that he originally was from Nibelheim?

All they did _was _drink liquor (and procreate, but Cloud had never partaken in _that_ kind of activity… as of yet anyway)! Cloud's tolerance was probably higher than 99.9 percent of the inhabitants of Midgar let alone all the pubescent kids running around at Yuffie's party!

But he held his tongue and let Aerith drag him into Zack's supposed 'chick-magnet', not wishing to dispute against his apparent 'weakness'.

What they didn't know meant a whole lot of fun for Cloud later on.

* * *

"What do you think they're doing?" Sephiroth stared at the table in front of him, eyes burning with anger. "Do you think he's found someone more suitable for his tastes? Or maybe he is dancing provocatively with one of the girls or young men at the party? Perhaps he's even… been lured into one of the bedrooms by now…"

_**SMACK!**_

"SNAP OUT OF IT!"

Sephiroth twisted his jaw as Genesis sat back down, the maddening grin on his friend's face nearly pulling the usually stoic silver-haired man out of his stony façade and punching him in the face.

"Are you really that insecure?" Angeal calmly asked the younger man as he gulped down another swig of beer, blue eyes questioning even if his tone was flippant. "I'm sure he's fine. Besides after that smooch you laid on him at his school I doubt anybody would be stupid enough to challenge your claim."

"So you would think…" Genesis sang out as he dug deeper within his boyfriend's side, teal eyes wide and full of playful scorn. "Kid's got admirers up the ying-yang and he doesn't even know it!"

"Genesis. Enough." And that was all Angeal had to say for the redheaded teacher shut his mouth, pouting slightly as Sephiroth smirked triumphantly before him. "And you, get that smirk off your face. You still haven't answered my question Mr. School Legend."

"I am not insecure. Cloud is an impressionable young man; I would hate to see someone take advantage of that."

"Besides you, you mean." Genesis helpfully pointed out, ignoring Angeal's warning look in favor of raining down on Sephiroth's parade of denial. "You are right, you know. It's quite easy to get underneath Strife's skin… I wouldn't put it past somebody to slip something in his drink and give him the time of his life."

"Genesis…" This time it was Sephiroth growling the name out, all but restraining the coming fury within his eyes.

"You're here, complaining about how much you _miss_ your lover boy, when you should be _there_ staking your claim. What the hell Sephiroth? You think one kiss is going to drive away every potential challenger? Most of those kids all thought it was a fluke anyway!" Genesis inwardly cheered as the promise of death and violence hung across Sephiroth's face, the expression frightening for people who had _not _been raised with the semi-spoiled brat (who used to mark all of his stuff with a permanent Sharpie and scream bloody murder whenever one of his friends would touch his toys without permission for crying out loud) now inhabiting Sephiroth's place. "If I were you I'd be a bit more cautious about who you let near your little marshmallow-y chocobo Seph-i-roth…"

"I take care of him just fine thank you! No one would dare do anything to him knowing just who he is friends with let alone committed to!" Though the younger man meant for the statement to come out harsh and straightforward the words melted into weary resentment, the anxiousness set upon Sephiroth's face amused Genesis well enough. A thin hand gripped the redhead's shoulder as all maliciousness drained away from the teacher's expression, blue eyes sternly warning the younger man from continuing on with his mind-game.

"Fine. Whatever. You and the kid are _marvelous. _But tell me, if that was so true…" And here Genesis paused for theatrical effect (something he was _very _good at by the way), "then what the hell are you still doing here?"

And Sephiroth, for once, had no real answer to give.

* * *

Cloud winced as the loud music reverberated within his ears, hiding himself within the masses of sweating gyrating bodies and slumped corpse-like figures already littering the corners and floors of Yuffie's home. The young owner of the house/mansion had squealed once he had appeared at the door and glomped him before ushering the adorable blond inside, telling the quiet schoolboy to make himself at home and 'unleash his inner-freaktivity'.

Honestly it scared him the way Yuffie's mind could run at times.

"Looking good, Cloudster!"

Cloud turned a cute strawberry red as Reno appeared behind and slapped him on the back, venom-green eyes alit with mischief.

"Uh… thanks." Blinking as he was handed a bright green concoction, Cloud gave the older teenager a slight smile of appreciation, already knowing that his drink was spiked and would probably not even take the edge off of his nervousness. "Is there anybody _else_ I know here or am I swamped in a sea of strangers?"

Reno cackled (probably already halfway drunk if Cloud warranted a guess) and pointed out in random directions, "There's Rufus over there, ignoring everybody within his vicinity and being his usual royal snobbishness, uh… I see Elena and Cissnei by the punch ball already adding more vodka to the ever-loving mix (Gaia bless their souls) while Rude is guarding 'em (heh, heh, heh, totally wasn't my idea by the way) and… damn, I think that's it for the people you _know_. Shit, Cloud! You know to socialize some more!"

Cloud was about to put his own two cents (after a nice swig of his alcoholic beverage) when a loud "Cloud!" cut past the music and rang into his ears.

"… Leon?"

"Squall?" Reno echoed after the blond, confused as all hell. "You know Cloudy here?"

A mop of chestnut brown locks, a derogatory glare and a scrunched up scar was all the response the grumpy waiter/college student was willing to give the redhead. "Yuffie. Enough said."

"Squall?" Cloud's own face scrunched up in confusion. "What the hell…"

"I can explain. _Upstairs._" Leon glared at the intoxicated redhead even further as the sound of laughter grated on both of their ears. "Get your mind out of the gutter and back on Gaia, Reno. _Jeez_."

Pulling the younger man up the stairs and _away _from the riffraff the downstairs party had to offer (whilst ignoring Reno's sudden cry of outraged shock), Leon pushed Cloud into one of the nearest rooms (which just so happened to be a _bedroom_) and locked the door behind him.

"Squall? That's your _real _name isn't it?" The blushing blond once again squeaked out, blue eyes curious, though not the slightest bit hazy. "Why did you give me a fake name?"

"It's not exactly fake and you're not the only person whom I give that name too. Reno's the only one who knows my real name and that's because he's a nosy asshole who doesn't know how to keep his mouth shut." Leon (or _Squall_) calmly explained. "I just… have some baggage ok? My real name's Squall Leonhart (hence _Leon_) but that's the only thing I lied to you about ok? Every thing else is 100 percent real and _me_."

"It's ok. You don't really have to justify yourself. I just thought we were friends is all." Sitting down on the vacant bed Cloud nursed the last of his drink. "How do you know Yuffie and Reno? You're in college… I figured you wouldn't know any other kids my age."

"It… kind of goes back to my baggage. My very old, very senile and very annoying baggage." Leon gave a his friend a wane smile, settling himself down beside the nervous recluse. "And you are my friend. I wanted to tell you all this before… but you've been spending all your free time with _you know who _lately."

Leon gave a feral growl as he thought of the intimidating monster that was Sephiroth; all of the stories he heard at university dropping over him like sloshes of acid rain. "I know you're wrapped up in what he has to say now, Cloud, but you have to be careful. I don't know a lot about Sephiroth except that everyone has something to say about him, true or not. And I've seen his temper first hand… that's not a guy you want to catch on a bad day."

"You've seen Sephiroth angry?" Cloud whispered, the young man leaning in close to his friend's side in fascination. "What is he like? What happened? Why where you _there_?"

"He's like a fucking beast, somebody said something they shouldn't have about his parents and it was just a case of wrong place, wrong time for me. All I know is I've never seen that guy again and even if I did, I probably wouldn't recognize him." Brushing a stray lock of blond hair away from Cloud's heart-shaped face, Leon carefully shifted onto his side as his steely-gray eyes watched every twitch and move of Cloud's expression. "I don't think he's good for you Cloud. You don't need someone like that in your life… not with all the drama you already have."

"Leon…"

"I could be good for you. I _swear_…"

Cloud gulped down the rest of his drink, for once cursing his hold over his liquor. It would figure that once Cloud was on the verge of becoming unavailable that almost all the males within his life would _suddenly _find him fascinating.

'_Help…_'

* * *

Long strands of silver were patted down as the tall figure the metallic cape of silk was attached glided through the door, already aware of the denizens sliding across the 'dance floor' halting in mid-movement to watch his entrance. Sephiroth barely even twitched as he scanned the residence for the head of spiky gold he had grown so fond of, taking in a deep breath when a short teenager with equally short dark hair bounced her way to him.

"Took you long enough." Yuffie whispered as she passed him by. She discretely pointed up the stairs and winked, already knowing what it was the legendary college student was looking for. "He's waiting for you right upstairs… though you might find a surprise when you get there!"

Ignoring the tinkering laughter, Sephiroth marched his way across the room and practically strode the long staircase leading to the rooms he had hoped that Cloud would avoid.

'I suppose I held too much faith in him…' 'Or perhaps it is the faith in these people and their intentions that may have caused me this trouble. Either way…'

Sephiroth was _pissed. _

Peering down the long hallway filled with closed doors, Sephiroth cracked his knuckles and proceeded to knock on each one. Quietly but persistently he banged on each piece of wood before dismissing every shocked face that _wasn't _Cloud's, his face filled with undisguised rage.

Whoever had managed to trap his Cloud _would not _be leaving this party…

_At least not in one piece._

* * *

Cloud giggled nervously as he backed away from the boundary-encroaching brunet with the serious look in his eyes. "Leon, you know I care about you but I don't want to ruin our friendship. And besides, we're too much alike. We'd just be staring at each other most of the time… _brooding_."

"At least I'd be staring at something pretty." Leon smirked back, hand poised over Cloud's shoulder when-

_Bang. Bang. Bang._

"Hmph." Leon rolled his eyes. "Occupied. Now-"

_Bang. Bang. Bang. _

Both young men stared at the door, Cloud in relief and Leon in annoyance.

"I _said_ occupied!"

The message, however was not translated will to its recipient.

_Bang. Bang. Bang. _

Growing frustrated with the low knocking, Leon finally got up (which made Cloud let out a soft, if still very audible, sigh of relief) and made his way to the door-

Only to wish he hadn't once it was opened and their mystery stranger was revealed.

The blond still on the bed gasped, standing up almost immediately. "Sephiroth!"

"Cloud…" Sephiroth growled out as his target's voice brought his attention away from the gray-eyed miscreant he had encountered on his date with said teenager. Green eyes glowing with displaced anger, pale hands grabbed the brunet and shoved them out of the room, his violent glare frightening with its promise of brutal intentions. "You will leave now or _face _the consequences."

"Seph!" Cloud squeaked, a hand covering his mouth as the nickname popped out unnoticed by both men. "Leave him alone! He wasn't going to do anything, he just wanted to talk!"

"In a bedroom Cloud? He could have taken you outside, or found a secluded place in the backyard, or even brought you _home_, but instead he brought you to a _bedroom _in someone else's house whilst you are consuming a beverage with who knows how much alcohol within it. Cloud, I do realize you are innocent but even _you _must be suspicious to a certain point." And now that Sephiroth had said that, Cloud could see why the older man would be so angry.

'Why am I always the naïve one?'

"Now, you-" Sephiroth glared poignantly at Leon, who was staring at him just as defiantly, "will leave my presence and be _grateful_ that I do not pick you apart… _limb by limb_. Am I _understood_?"

"I'll do nothing that _Cloud_ doesn't want me to do thank you!"

"Well Cloud wants you both to chill the hell out!" Both men flinched as Cloud appeared between them, blue eyes slanted and angry. "Leon, we'll talk tomorrow. I think it's best if you get out please."

Biting his lip as Sephiroth smirked at him over the 16-year-old boy's shoulder, Leon quietly nodded before leaving, shoulders slumped and head down.

"_Get_ that _stupid smirk _off of your face _right now_." Cloud snapped, closing the door behind Leon's retreating form. "What the _hell _are you doing here? I told you that I didn't need you to come!"

"Well apparently you also think that when older men lead innocent young boys into random bedrooms isn't some sort of proposal towards something Strife, so _perhaps_ you do not know what is best for you after all!"

"Leon's my _friend_! He wouldn't do something like that unless I agreed to it! Which I _didn't_!"

"But he wanted to did he not?"

"I never said he didn't!"

Cloud inched away from the looming figure, but unlike with Leon, actually felt a tinge of fear as Sephiroth's footsteps followed his own. "It's not like we're even together! I said I would give you a chance and here you are already acting as if I'm your favorite toy you don't want to share or something!"

"Once again I must remind you that it was you Cloud that asked me to be 'myself' and _this _is as real as I can be." Gulping as his back hit the wall, Cloud stared up at cloudy green eyes roused with anger, excitement, fury and fear ambling through younger man's body as Cloud attempted to steady himself instead of falling into the turbid black-holes that were Sephiroth's eyes. "I won't let you go now that I have you. Don't you understand yet?"

Cloud held his breath as Sephiroth stared into his eyes, the bass of the music blaring downstairs hitting the walls in constant slaps whilst teenage screams accompanied the beat. Face coming closer, all the trapped blond could do was close his eyes and brace himself for the onslaught as a narrow nose hit the tip of his own and slightly cold lips breached his pale pink ones. Fingers shaking against the wallpapered wall, Cloud nearly fainted as a warm tongue pried his mouth open and cold hands grasped onto his clothed biceps in an attempt to keep the larger man from losing… control…?

Sighing against the (at one time) unwanted kiss, Cloud let his hands trail upwards and hold onto Sephiroth's forearms. After a moment of no other response from the timid 16-year-old, Sephiroth broke the kiss and smiled down at the increasing amount of red flourishing over Cloud's face as oceanic blue slowly appeared under opening lids.

"I will protect you from everything," Sephiroth whispered, "even if you think it silly and unwarranted. I cannot lose you Cloud."

Cloud kept his mouth shut as Sephiroth draped himself over the young boy's shoulder, shaking unsteadily over his own feet. Not protesting to the man's hold over his person, Cloud finally reciprocated the embrace and leaned his head over the 21-year-old's shoulder.

If he wasn't in love before… Cloud knew that he was _now_.


End file.
